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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27988158">Quality of Life</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/JCapasso/pseuds/JCapasso'>JCapasso</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Barn [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haven (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:42:03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>25,630</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27988158</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/JCapasso/pseuds/JCapasso</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Once Duke and Audrey are taken away by the barn, Howard has a few more bombshells to drop on them that will drastically affect their futures.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Duke Crocker/Audrey Parker</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Barn [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2048234</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Once they were away, Howard told the group, “We have a few more things to discuss.”</p><p>“Like what?” Audrey asked wearily, curled against Duke’s side trying to comfort them both. </p><p>“The first problem is that you,” he looked at Duke, “Are mortal.”</p><p>“And?” Duke asked, not seeing what he could do about that. </p><p>“And while this cycle of the barn will still work, and perhaps the next, should you die, the barn will cease to function,” Howard told them. </p><p>“So this is just a bandaid then,” Audrey said sadly. “He just gave up his entire life and for what? To save the town one more time just for them to implode next time around?!”</p><p>“There is a way to resolve the issue, but like all else, it is your decision,” Howard told them. </p><p>“What way?” Duke asked. </p><p>“To tie your life to Audrey’s. As long as she lives, so will you. Should one of you die, the other will follow. Should one of you be injured, the other will share those injuries. You will be linked together permanently,” Howard explained. </p><p>“What do you think?” Duke asked Audrey. </p><p>“No, what do /you/ think,” she countered. “You’re the one who’ll be going through such a major change.”</p><p>“I think…the idea of being immortal sucks. That life only means something because it can end. But it doesn’t matter what I think, does it?” </p><p>“Of course it does,” Audrey said sadly. </p><p>“No, it really doesn’t. If I don’t do this, Haven will be destroyed, and who knows if it’ll stop there. You saw how much the troubles escalated in just a few years. How may people are going to run away from Haven next time? For all we know the troubles could spread to the entire world. In this situation, choice is just an illusion,” Duke sighed. </p><p>“What happened to choosing your destiny?” Audrey asked, wondering just how much this whole thing had broken the Duke that she knew. </p><p>“Oh I can still do that and I will. I just don’t get to control how long that destiny is anymore,” Duke told her, perking up a bit as he realized that he did still have plenty of choices left. “I’m not letting anyone control me. Now or ever.” </p><p>“But you do want to go through with this linking thing?” Audrey asked, feeling a lot better at that declaration. </p><p>“I’m not the only one who has to make that decision. Sure, it may affect me the most, but it’ll affect you too. You know how I am. How often I end up going in half-cocked and getting myself hurt. How many people I piss off who end up coming after me. Every time I get hurt, you’ll feel it too, remember.”</p><p>“I know. I’m good with that,” Audrey decided looking back at Howard for instructions.</p><p>“You will be sent to the lab to have the link created once we are finished here. There is still more to discuss,” Howard told them. </p><p>“Oh god. More? Really?” Audrey asked with a slump. </p><p>“I believe that you will like this topic better,” Howard told them. “You see, the primary purpose of the personality wipe with each incarnation was to facilitate the ability to find love with each trip. You could hardly fall in love again if you were still mourning past loves after all.”</p><p>“You’re saying we get to stay who we are?” Audrey asked hopefully, noticing that James and Duke looked happy at that too. </p><p>“If you wish, then yes. And should you, eventually, get bored with your current personas, you can still choose to take on new personalities as well. Either as a couple or going your separate ways, though the link will be permanent.” </p><p>“Hell yeah we wish,” Duke said with a grin. “Don’t we?” he suddenly realized he had answered for Audrey. </p><p>“Definitely,” she nodded. “So, since we’re not being ‘rewritten’ or anything, what happens for the next two and a half decades?”</p><p>“Well it will take a few months to have your link installed, but after that, you can return to the same simulated world as last time, except that with full power, there will also be other people there…randomized, not the ones you’ve known…you will also not have the twenty mile limit, and time will move at a normal rate,” Howard explained. </p><p>“Can I talk to you alone for a minute?” she asked Howard who nodded so Duke and James moved off to walk around, trusting the AI to be able to find them even if Audrey didn’t. Once she was relatively sure they were alone, she asked Howard, “Would it be possible to have children in here?” She didn’t want to freak Duke out by asking the question in front of him, but didn’t want to bring it up with him without knowing if it was possible in the first place either. </p><p>“Yes, it would be possible, however there are things you need to be aware of,” he told her. </p><p>“Like what?” </p><p>“If they are born in the barn, they will never be able to leave the barn, though the simulated world can remain running while you are on Earth during each cycle,” Howard explained. </p><p>“What kind of life could they have here? I mean, could they grow up, get married, have children…you said there would be other people in the simulation. How real would they be?” </p><p>“They would grow up as normal, and would also be mortal since they would be halflings. The link will not change his DNA,” Howard told her. “The simulated people would seem real in every way except for the fact that they can only simulate procreation. Your children would be able to have relationships, fall in love, get married, but having children with the simulations would not be possible.” </p><p>“But they could adopt simulated babies at least?” Audrey asked hopefully. </p><p>“They could, yes. And as non-simulations, they could automatically be at the top of any adoption lists should they choose to go that route.” </p><p>“What other perks would there be to being non-simulations and would Duke, James, and I have these perks too?” Audrey asked curiously. </p><p>“The simulation responds to your desires to a point and you can define that point. If you wish to become Queen of the world, that can be arranged, or you can just live your life normally, subject to the same pitfalls and turns of luck as any normal human,” Howard told her. “You and Duke will be the primary link to the simulated world, so none of the others will have the same control that you do.”</p><p>“Okay, I think we all need to discuss how much control we want, but I can definitely say no to the Queen of the world part,” Audrey chuckled. “Back to the original topic though. Our children…would they end up bound to the barn too and how would that work if they’re mortal?”</p><p>“We were able to modify the programming enough to prevent such a problem from occurring again and even if we had not, it would only happen if the barn were damaged enough to have to pull from their life forces to survive. With the modifications, however, the barn can only pull from those already connected to it. Yourself, your husband, your son, and the prisoner. And that should be enough to sustain it as it was the last time.” </p><p>“Okay. That’s good at least,” Audrey decided. “So to sum up, if we did have kids, we could raise them for the next twenty five plus years and then just take a year and a half ‘vacation’ away from them before coming back and they would still be here and everything?” </p><p>“Twenty years this time, but correct,” Howard nodded. </p><p>"Twenty years?" she asked. </p><p>"Traveling without the aid of the meteor storm is...difficult. We will get back on our normal schedule which means that this trip will be shortened," Howard explained.</p><p>“Okay good. We should probably go find Duke and James then and start thinking about how much control we want over the world. Do we have to decide now or can we think about it for a while?” she asked. </p><p>“Your minds will be in something akin to a meditation state during the linking procedure so you will have that time to consider the matter, though you’ll not be able to communicate,” Howard said as Duke and James appeared back beside them still in mid-step. </p><p>“Okay, that’s weird,” Duke said with a bit of a shudder as he realized what happened. “And think about what?” </p><p>“How much you want the simulated world to respond to your desires,” Howard told him. </p><p>“What does that mean, respond to our desires?” Duke asked curiously. </p><p>“It can mean whatever you want it to mean,” Howard told him, not sure how much more clearly he could explain it. </p><p>“So we could, for example, just say ‘I wish I was rich’ and we would be rich?” James asked. </p><p>“If you wish. Or you can have no control at all and simply let things unfold. I would suggest, if you decide on such, to use a different control phrase than ‘I wish’. Humans tend to use those words rather freely, after all.” </p><p>“Okay, yeah. We’ll think about it and then talk about it when we wake up?” Audrey suggested to Duke and James. Even though James would apparently not have the same control, they would still take his wants into consideration. When they both agreed, she and Duke were bustled off to the lab for the link to be created. After a bit of hesitation, Audrey asked for a moment alone with Duke first and told him what Howard had said about the possibility of them having children. Something else to think about during what would probably become a long few months. It was something that they would both need to give a lot of thought to anyway, though she could tell that Duke, like her, was leaning towards yes.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Once Duke and Audrey were awake, Howard met them and let them know that James was already in the simulation waiting for them once they got everything settled. “Well first thing is I want all our stuff as it was when we left Earth,” Duke said looking at Audrey for agreement which he got. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to get any more emails or communications from the outside world, but he wanted all the pictures and videos that he had saved on his computer already. “And can we get rid of all the pollution in the world? And keep it gone?” </p><p>“That is all doable, yes,” Howard told them. </p><p>“And crime and poverty and stuff,” Audrey added. </p><p>“I don’t know about that,” Duke jumped in. “I mean, that gets into the whole free will thing, and simulations or not they’re still people. If we’re gonna go that far then we might as well take full control over everything.”</p><p>Audrey sighed. “Yeah, okay. I see your point.” </p><p>“Besides, how would I get by as the only criminal in the world without any connections. Buyers, sellers, etcetera,” Duke chuckled. </p><p>“You do realize that since the people are all randomized, none of your contacts will be there anyway,” she pointed out. </p><p>“Yeah, we’ll have to fix that too,” Duke said seriously. </p><p>Audrey rolled her eyes as she considered another way to help people in general. “Okay how about just making it easier for people. Like putting water in the areas that don’t have clean water or making it easier to grow food in places that can’t?” </p><p>“That’s a good idea,” Duke agreed. </p><p>“Yes, the simulation can do that easily,” Howard nodded. “Now about the level of control you want…”</p><p>“I say none for the most part, but with the whole command phrase thing to use for emergencies and stuff,” Duke suggested. </p><p>“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking too,” Audrey nodded. “Can we get hurt or killed in there?” she asked. </p><p>“Illnesses and injuries, yes, but you cannot die inside the barn,” Howard told them. “And your command over the simulation cannot affect each other or James, or anyone else that is not simulated such as any children you may have.”</p><p>“Okay, good. Is there anything else we need to decide or you think we should know?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“With the linking process, you are now immune to the troubles as Audrey is,” Howard told Duke. “Though your trouble is still present, though inactive inside the barn.”</p><p>“Immune as in…to everything? Even the effect that keeps me from being near my daughter?” Duke asked hopefully. </p><p>“That is correct, though like Audrey you can still be affected by the physical aspects of the troubles,” Howard explained. </p><p>Duke grinned happily, as Audrey hugged him in congratulations. It would still be twenty years before he could see her, but at least he would be able to see her at all. “Thank you,” Audrey told Howard when Duke was at a loss for words. All that was left was for them to set a command phrase and they chose something that they could remember easily but wouldn’t be likely to say on accident. </p><p>They appeared on the deck of the boat and did a quick check to make sure everything was where it was supposed to be before heading to the Gull, finding James there sitting at the bar and chatting with the bartender. “Hey, you made it!” James said cheerfully, hugging them both. “I got moved back in upstairs and swiped some money from the safe. I figured you wouldn’t mind since I didn’t really have anything when I got here.”</p><p>“Nah, it’s all good, kid. We’ll get you set up and all,” Duke assured him, intending to move some money around from his accounts that should be intact here. If not, they could make them that way. </p><p>It was a little unsettling being home but not knowing anyone, though most people knew them to some degree since Duke was still the owner of the Gull and everything so had ‘supposedly’ hired the people there. They spent the rest of the day walking around town and trying to get used to it, but once they were in bed that night Duke suggested, “We should get away for a while. Take some time to unwind and resettle.”</p><p>“Yeah that’s a good idea. The last four years have been just one disaster after another and we could both use a chance to relax I think,” Audrey agreed. “And I was thinking about the kids thing…I think we should wait until the next go around.”</p><p>“I was thinking the same thing,” Duke told her. “I don’t know about you, but after having to leave Jeanie like that, I’m not really up for having more right now. And we need at least a few years to find ourselves and how we fit in this world.”</p><p>“And since we’re only going to be here for twenty years this time around, that would put us leaving when the kids were still teenagers at best,” Audrey added, on the same wavelength as her husband. </p><p>“And it’s not like we have to worry about biological clocks or anything anymore since we’re not aging in any world,” Duke finished. </p><p>“Then it’s decided. No kids this time,” she agreed. “We’ll talk to James about taking a trip tomorrow and get his input. We’ve still got all my dive gear here but we’ll need his too. And since there are people this time, it doesn’t have to be /all/ about the diving. We can hit Rio again with people there, and a lot of other hot spots.” </p><p>“I’m good with that as long as you don’t expect me to spend /too/ much time with the whole party crowd,” Duke could agree. </p><p>“I figure while James and I are checking out the parties, you can be doing some of your business that I don’t want to know about,” Audrey chuckled. </p><p>“I knew I married you for a reason,” Duke grinned, pulling her into a long kiss. </p><p>The next day, James easily agreed to a trip and they all sat down to plan an itinerary. Most of Duke’s network had been recreated here so they were mixing business and pleasure. Well, business for Duke at least. The final itinerary was a lot like their first trip the last time they were in the barn. The Bahamas to Brazil, adding a stop in Columbia, and then across to Hawaii followed by Japan and South Korea, and then circling around under Australia and then back up the African coast to the Red sea, with plenty of visits to the countries along coast. The planned to take at least two years and possibly three before circling back to Haven. </p><p>While Audrey still had her dive gear on board, carried over from the real world, they had to get James outfitted again and this time they actually had to pay for it, not that it made much of a dent in their finances and Duke moved about fifty thousand into an account for James before they left. Since he didn’t have any rent or bills to pay that should be more than enough to have fun with and if he ran out they’d get him more. It wasn’t like they were even giving him a chance to get a job or anything at the moment. They could worry about those sorts of things when they got back. </p><p>Duke generally did join Audrey and James to enjoy the nightlife once a week, when they were in places that /had/ a nightlife anyway and were safe to explore. A lot of the areas were dangerous for outsiders, especially beautiful foreign women. Those were generally short stops though for Duke to handle some business and move on. Whenever Duke joined them, James tended to move off and find his own fun. Partially because when Duke and Audrey got drunk they got a little handsy and he did /not/ want to see that, but he did want to find his own women to get ‘handsy’ with and often didn’t make it back to the boat on those nights. Especially in Rio. </p><p>There were a few incidents on the trip where the hidden guns on the boat came in handy, but between Audrey’s training in managing a dangerous situation and Duke’s experience with talking people down in his own special way, they managed to avoid bloodshed for the most part. Duke very much enjoyed getting back to his real business now that he wasn’t trying to keep Haven from falling apart at the seams all the time or before that being stuck in a world without any other people. He worried for a while that Audrey would end up dumping him now that he was back to being able to be himself all the way. They had gotten together when it was just them in the world and then he was too busy to do much in the way of criminal activities once they were back in the real world after all. Once she realized what he was thinking though, she put a stop to that. Told him that she fell in love with him when he was a smuggler, regardless of when they got together, and she wasn’t going to ever stop loving him for being himself. </p><p>Once they made it back to Haven, almost three years later and completely refreshed and ready to get back to the normal daily grind, they had to figure out how to fit themselves into this town now. Duke was easy. He had his restaurant and just picked up his ‘import export business’ like he never left. Audrey and James had to figure out what to do with their time. James decided to try his hand at bartending and Duke didn’t hesitate to hire him, while Audrey wanted to go back to her old job at Haven PD now that she wasn’t as burnt out anymore. Given that there were no troubles to contend with, it was a relatively simple job and she could definitely appreciate that after everything she’d been through. Weekends were spent fishing and diving and just being out on the water and vacation time was easy enough to come by and she and Duke took a two-week trip alone every year and every five years she took a year leave of absence for them to take a longer trip. </p><p>Four years after they returned to Haven, James announced that he was getting married. He had fallen for one of the waitresses at the Gull where he was still working. He asked Duke to be his best man and Duke gladly accepted. Kim joined them on their next year long trip, but by the one after it they had adopted a baby and didn’t want to take their eight month old son on such a long boat trip so Duke and Audrey went alone. This time they kept in touch often and even sent pictures and videos back and forth. James Jr, usually called Junior, called Duke and Audrey Grandma and Grandpa, despite how young they looked and they loved being grandparents. Especially when little Sarah came along four years after Junior. </p><p>James’ journal for his father included pictures this time and Audrey and Duke had their own copies of most of them along with some of their own. Duke had started one of the same journals for Jean, hoping that he would get a chance to see her and that she didn’t hate him. Audrey assured him that she wouldn’t hate him. That she would understand once it was explained, but Duke couldn’t quite believe it. All he could think of was the way his mother had abandoned him and how much damage that had done to him. Damage that he didn’t think would ever heal completely, though Audrey did help quite a bit. James, having been adopted himself, also put his own two cents into that subject and completely agreed with Audrey. Once she was old enough to understand, she wouldn’t fault him for it. </p><p>Before they knew it their twenty years was up, and it was time to get ready to go. Duke left the Gull in James and Kim’s hands while they were gone and told them they were free to use the boat whenever they wanted as long as they took good care of her. It wouldn’t be much different than their usual year long trips except it would be for a year and a half this time, so no one was too broken up to say goodbye. The only difference would be the inability to keep in contact which would be difficult, but they were eager to see their friends and family on the other side too. That would be the one that would be hard to leave because they got so little time. </p><p>Since the barn wasn’t on it’s last legs this time, they could take a few things with them. Not a lot, but enough to get them by. They knew that their electronics wouldn’t work anymore so those got left behind along with all their ids and credit and debit cards which would be just as useless. The barn would be setting them up with new identities for public consumption along with a basic bank account, but Duke was perfectly willing to transfer some money from his secret accounts in the Caymans. He did at least need to check up on them and make sure they stayed active indefinitely anyway. Most of their packing was clothes and only the ones appropriate for Maine. Their dive gear was too bulky, but they could get along without that. The only other things they took were the journals for Jean and Nathan and their photo albums. They didn’t have a /lot/ of pictures per se, being more busy enjoying their life than taking pictures of it, but they did have quite a few.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Since they didn’t have new personalities and thus didn’t need a cover story to get them to town, the barn just dropped them off in the same place as last time. In the woods behind the Gull and they quickly made their way that direction, seeing that the Gull was still operating and was apparently open. “Shall we get the lay of the land before deciding where to go next?” Duke asked gesturing towards it. </p><p>“That’s probably best, yeah,” Audrey agreed as they headed inside. They weren’t even sure how cabs worked in this time, if they were even still a thing. </p><p>Jeanie was wiping down the bar and restocking when she noticed them come in and her breath caught. But no. They were early and the troubles weren’t even back yet. It couldn’t be them. The lighting was rather dim in here so maybe her eyes were just playing tricks on her. She barely had any memories of him outside of pictures and she’d never seen anything /but/ pictures of her and even if it was them, she’d been told they would be different people and wouldn’t remember anything from before. She still had to see for herself though so she went over and introduced herself. “Hi, I’m Jeanie Crocker. Can I help you?” she asked, trying her best to keep casual despite how much she wanted to cry once she saw that it was really them. </p><p>“Jeanie? Baby?” Duke breathed out as he got a good look at her. </p><p>“Daddy?” she asked hopefully before she remembered that she couldn’t be near him. “Oh god. The trouble thing. I…I gotta go…” she turned to flee, but was stopped by a hand around her wrist. </p><p>“Don’t. Please,” Duke said desperately. “They found a way to make me immune to the troubles…you don’t have to go.” He knew that there was a chance that she still would. That she hated him and wanted nothing to do with him. He just desperately hoped that Audrey and James were right and she would let him be a part of her life. </p><p>It took a second for his words to register and then Jeanie threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly as her tears fell. “I missed you so much. They told me that you wouldn’t remember me or…or anything or anybody, but I hoped…I love you Daddy,” she babbled. </p><p>Duke wrapped his arms around her, resting a hand on the back of her head where she was crying into his chest and pressed his lips to the top of her head. “It’s a long story, but yeah. I’m still me. I still remember everything. I’ve missed you so much too baby. I love you always.” </p><p>“I’ll give you two some time,” Audrey said softly, placing a hand on Duke’s back before she went to walk away. </p><p>“No, wait,” Jeanie called, pulling herself away from her father. “Stay?” she asked hopefully. “I mean, you’re kinda my stepmom right? And…I’ve never really had a mom and I just…” </p><p>Audrey smiled brightly and held her arms out in invitation for a hug which Jeanie gladly gave her. “I’ll be anything you want me to be,” she promised. </p><p>“Does that mean…can I call you mom?” Jeanie asked hesitantly. </p><p>“Absolutely,” Audrey assured her. </p><p>“Come on. Let’s get out of here and go somewhere to talk,” Jeanie told them, grabbing both of their hands and all but dragging them outside. </p><p>Duke and Audrey each grabbed their bags with the free hand and chuckled as they followed her, only a little bit surprised to be headed for the Cape Rouge. “She’s yours now?” Duke asked curiously. “Or do you still stay here with Wade?” </p><p>“Uncle Wade signed it over to me on my eighteenth birthday, along with the Gull. He still helps out though and lives in the apartment upstairs. He said that as your daughter everything you had should be mine as soon as I was old enough. That’s okay right?” </p><p>“Definitely,” Duke told her as they headed inside and Duke and Audrey sat on either side of Jeanie, Duke wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her to his side, just needing that contact with her after so long. “I didn’t know I would be leaving until the last minute so we didn’t get a chance to talk much about that, but it’s definitely what I would have wanted. As long as it’s what /you/ wanted and didn’t get pushed into it.” </p><p>“No, it is. I mean, I grew up on the Rouge and hanging around the Gull. It was my link to you. It was the best birthday present he could have given me,” Jeanie assured him. “But…can I ask…why are you early? The troubles haven’t even started again yet? Or is something all messed up again?” </p><p>“No, everything’s fine,” Audrey assured her. “It’s just that the barn has trouble getting here without the Hunter meteor storm so since it was so delayed last time this one was shorter so we could get back on schedule.” </p><p>“Hopefully that means the troubles won’t get too bad this time,” Duke added. “But Jeanie, when the troubles do start…”</p><p>“I’m not going anywhere,” she said stubbornly crossing her arms and looking at him like she was daring him to argue. </p><p>“I just want you to be safe…” Duke tried to reason. </p><p>“And I want to choose my own destiny,” she said pointedly, having heard over the years that he’d said that a lot. “When it was a matter of /having/ to leave so I wouldn’t kill you by being too close, I would have done it, but I’m not giving up this chance to be with you for the little bit of time we have.” </p><p>Duke looked at Audrey and they had a silent conversation before he told Jeanie, “What if I leave with you? You and me, we can take a trip, spend some time together, and then I’ll just come back when the meteor shower hits.” </p><p>“I’m not abandoning my home, Dad,” she said firmly. “And I can’t ask you to either.”</p><p>“But if you get my trouble…and it gets activated…”</p><p>“Everyone always tells me how I’m just as bull-headed as you are. I’ll be able to control it just like you did. And besides, the best theory is that I’d get my mother’s trouble anyway and since I’m still too young to get the baby fever like that, I should be fine,” she told him. </p><p>“What makes you think you’ll get your mother’s trouble instead?” Audrey asked curiously wondering if there was a reason behind that theory. </p><p>“Because of the way I affected Dad when I was a baby. Since that’s an affect of her trouble and you can’t have more than one, that’s probably the one I’ll get,” she explained. “Uncle Nathan let me read your notes about her trouble so I know how it’s triggered. I hope that’s okay?” </p><p>“It’s perfectly fine,” Audrey nodded. “But not until you were an adult I hope?” </p><p>“I started bugging him about it once him and Uncle Wade told me the whole story when I was sixteen but he didn’t cave for a few years after that,” Jeanie chuckled. </p><p>“It’s still not definite though,” Duke pointed out. </p><p>“But either way, it’s not the end of the world. Uncle Wade told me how awful your trouble is and how dangerous it is and I get it. I’ll be careful and if it /does/ happen, I’ll have you to help teach me how to control it,” she told him. </p><p>“But the rest of the troubles in town are still dangerous. This is a difficult place to be when the troubles are active,” Duke didn’t want to give up. </p><p>“I’m not that fragile, Dad,” she said firmly. “I’m not leaving. Period.” </p><p>Audrey couldn’t help but laugh at her look that was pure Duke Crocker dig in his heels stubborn. “She definitely did get your bull-headedness, sweetheart. You might as well give it up.” </p><p>Duke huffed but nodded and Jeanie went from a glare to a grin in the blink of an eye. “Great. Then I’ll get my stuff moved over to the spare room while you’re here…”</p><p>“No, we’re not running you out of your room. This is /your/ boat now,” Duke shook his head. </p><p>“Okay then you guys can have the spare room. Or if you’d rather, I’m sure Uncle Wade wouldn’t mind taking the spare room and letting you have the apartment,” Jeanie suggested. </p><p>“The spare room is fine,” Audrey chuckled. They didn’t want to run Wade out of his home either. “But we can always get another place if you’d rather have your space,” she still had to say. </p><p>“No way. I only get a year and a half to spend with you two before you disappear for another twenty-five years. Space is the last thing I want. Just remember, there are somethings I never want to know about my parents,” she said pointedly. </p><p>Duke barked a laugh at the implication and told her, “And there are some things that we never want our daughter to know, so we should be good.” </p><p>“We’re no strangers to sharing living space,” Audrey assured her amusedly despite her slight blush.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Since that’s settled…tell me about your life? Were you happy?” Duke asked her. </p><p>“Yeah. Very. Actually…hang on. I’ll be right back,” she told them getting up to dash to her room and came back a few minutes later with a leather-bound journal. “Uncle Nathan suggested that I make one of these for you. I started it when I was thirteen, but put a lot of older stuff in it too. Sorry about the not so nice parts though. I was kinda mad at you for a little while, but Uncle Nathan and Uncle Wade said that you would still want me to leave it in there so…”</p><p>Duke took it like it was made of gold, just like Nathan had when he’d gotten the first journal from James. He ran his hand over it for a minute before setting it aside. “I’ll read it later. Right now I just want to talk to you. And they were right about me wanting to read the mad parts too. I want to know /everything/.” He reached down and opened his bag, pulling out the journal that he’d made for her and handed it to her. “I kept one for you too.” </p><p>Jeanie hugged it tightly to her chest. The proof that she hadn’t been forgotten about. That he’d thought of her and wanted her to know him even after all these years. This was the fatherly acceptance that she’d dreamed of for so long and her eyes started to fill with tears again as she leaned against his side for a hug and he didn’t disappoint, pulling her close and kissing the top of her head. “I thought of you every day,” he whispered. </p><p>“Me too,” she sniffled before she pulled herself together and sat back up. “Okay. So. Talking. Yeah. Well Uncle Wade and I moved here after you left. We put all your old stuff in storage and moved into the boat since the apartment only had one room. There was a lot of stuff we didn’t find the first time though that got stumbled across over the years.”</p><p>“I can only imagine,” Audrey chuckled. </p><p>“I kept most of the secret passages to myself,” she whispered conspiratorially.</p><p>“Like a true Crocker,” Duke grinned proudly. </p><p>“I hope you didn’t run across any of the gun stashes when you were little,” Audrey said, only a little worried since she was obviously in one piece. </p><p>“Depends on how you define little,” Jeanie shrugged. “The release latches were up high enough that I couldn’t reach them until I was old enough to know better than to play with them. Those I /did/ tell Uncle Wade about…well, except the one in my room I kept to myself, but like I said, I knew better than to play with them anyway.”</p><p>“What did he do with them?” Duke asked curiously. </p><p>“After making me swear never to touch any of them without permission unless it was life or death, he left them alone. He told me later that he didn’t know how legal any of them were or if they could implicate you in any crimes anywhere, so it was best to keep them hidden rather than try and dispose of them and hope they weren’t found. I did convince him to let me learn to shoot after that though and he agreed only if Uncle Nathan was the one to teach me since he never used guns much himself.” </p><p>“That’s good. Nathan would have taught you how to use them safely,” Audrey agreed. “How old were you?”</p><p>“Eleven,” she told them. </p><p>“That’s a good age,” Duke nodded. “I learned a lot younger, but that was just because I /had/ to.” </p><p>“How come?” Jeanie asked curiously, wanting to know as much about her dad’s life as he did about hers. </p><p>“I was on my own since I was eight,” Duke had no intention of hiding anything from his daughter, as hard as it was to talk about. “Wade’s and my Dad died, but my mom had skipped out when I was a baby. She came back to take custody of me so she could get the welfare checks, but that was all she cared about. She only showed up to get the money and, of course, whenever social services started sniffing around. Couldn’t let her meal ticket get taken away. Other than that I was on my own with nothing.” </p><p>“That’s why you asked Uncle Wade to take care of me when you couldn’t?” Jeanie asked. “So I wouldn’t end up like that?”</p><p>“Exactly. Once your adopted family died and you were in foster care, I never could have left you there. Wade was the only person I had who wasn’t too deeply embroiled in the trouble mess to leave. I wanted you to have a better life than I did. I wanted you to have the choices that I never got. I wanted you to be able to do anything with your life that you wanted to,” he told her, unable to resist glancing around the boat. </p><p>“And I do have the life I want,” she assured him, noticing his look. “I got your love for the water and would hate having to leave the boat. I do most of the work on it myself and run the Gull, but I didn’t follow in your footsteps in /every/ way. Just the ways I /wanted/ to. I went to college, got a degree in restaurant management. I definitely don’t get into any illegal stuff…well not big illegal stuff anyway,” she added. </p><p>“What kind of illegal stuff do you do?” Audrey asked non-judgmentally. </p><p>“Sometimes when someone is in a bind, I’ll pay them under the table. I turn a blind eye to certain things going on here, but not anything that hurts people of course. I still keep all the illegal guns on hand in case of emergency. That kind of stuff,” she shrugged, not at all worried about Audrey being in law enforcement. If she could handle Duke’s much worse criminal activities, she wasn’t likely to balk at her little bit. </p><p>“All understandable stuff,” Duke nodded. Not that he would disapprove if she was into more than that unless she actually did hurt people of course, but he would never actually /want/ her to live a life of crime. “So what was it like growing up in Haven? I bet it took a while for things to get cleaned up after all the mess.”</p><p>“Yeah, I don’t remember a /lot/ about that time, but I remember some. There were a lot of places boarded up and abandoned for a while. Mostly I remember how people treated me though. It seemed like everyone in town loved me. I didn’t get why until I was older though and started hearing about my ‘hero’ Dad.” </p><p>Duke snorted derisively, “Hero? Right.” </p><p>“Your dad was never treated very well by the town when we were here,” Audrey explained the reaction to Jeanie before turning to Duke. “Like it or not, sweetheart, you were a hero to this town,” Audrey told him. “And then sacrificing everything to leave to save them…”</p><p>“No more than you’ve done a hundred times,” he pointed out. </p><p>“Oh she was a hero too,” Jeanie told him. “You both were. So was Uncle Nathan and Grandpa Vince and Grandpa Dave.” </p><p>“They’re not still around are they?” Duke asked amusedly, skipping over the grandpa part, but starting to get an idea of how beloved Jeanie had been that they apparently wanted her to call them that. </p><p>“No, they died when I was twelve,” Jeanie sighed sadly. “Two months apart even. Grandpa Dave went first.” </p><p>“We knew they would probably be gone by the time we got back,” Audrey said sadly. “They were in their eighties when we left.” </p><p>“I think they left some things for you for when you got back. You’d have to talk to Dwight though. He would have all that,” Jeanie said. “Of course, we all thought you wouldn’t remember anything, so it was supposed to be doled out piecemeal to put you on the right track when you started digging, but there’s no reason for that anymore,” she laughed. </p><p>“That’s a good thing. I hated tracking down that puzzle,” Audrey huffed. </p><p>“But this time you would have had me and I’m /very/ good at puzzles,” Duke chuckled. </p><p>“What did you mean when you said that the town never treated Dad well?” Jeanie backtracked a bit. </p><p>“I was always the bad kid. The little budding criminal,” Duke was the one to answer. “No one bothered to look closer and ask why. To see that what I needed was help. Then when I grew up and got involved in more and more illegal stuff for lack of other options, they just scoffed and said ‘they always knew I was a bad seed’. Even when I was helping with the troubles, half the town acted like I was a ticking time bomb, especially the guard.” </p><p>“Well you showed them and they finally saw how wrong they were about you,” Jeanie assured him. </p><p>“They weren’t /entirely/ wrong,” Duke had to point out. </p><p>“You have /always/ been a good man, Duke. No matter what else you’ve done, that’s never changed,” Audrey jumped in. </p><p>“No one ever hid your bad parts from me,” Jeanie told him. “Not once I was older anyway,” she added. “It wasn’t like they suddenly whitewashed your life or anything. They just admitted that they were wrong to judge you as harshly as they did. Uncle Nathan especially.” </p><p>“Okay, I guess I can live with that,” Duke chuckled.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They sat around trading stories and getting to know each other for a few more hours before they noticed the time. “I can make us up some dinner,” Duke offered. </p><p>“Yeah, I don’t really have much of anything here,” Jeanie said sheepishly. “I don’t cook,” she explained. “I’ve always had the restaurant so…”</p><p>“That’s okay. I don’t cook either,” Audrey whispered conspiratorially.</p><p>Duke just laughed. “The Gull it is then. We should grab Wade too. You said he lives upstairs?” </p><p>“Yeah, but he’s out of town right now. He’s supposed to be back in the morning,” Jeanie told him. </p><p>“In that case…mind if I borrow your phone?” Duke asked with a mischievous grin. Jeanie handed it over with a matching grin of her own, imagining her Uncle’s reaction to hearing from Duke. “Watch this,” he whispered as the phone rang. As soon as Wade answered Duke said in mock anger, “What were you thinking turning my daughter into a barmaid?” </p><p>“Duke?!” Wade asked, brain in too much shock to really think beyond that. </p><p>“Ow…crap…okay…geez,” Duke ducked as he laughed. “You realize that I get the point just fine if only one you hits me at a time right?” </p><p>That was enough to send Wade into laughter too, perfectly familiar with Jeanie’s ‘violent tendencies’ and could imagine Audrey’s being just as bad. “What the hell? How are you back so soon and how do you remember and how are you even near Jeanie without dying and how…”</p><p>“How about one question at a time there, brother,” Duke cut him off with a laugh before answering the ones he’d already asked including the explanation he hadn’t gotten to with Jeanie yet. “They said that since Audrey didn’t need to find new love every time she came to Haven, they didn’t have to wipe our memories unless we wanted them too. Obviously, we didn’t, so here we are.” </p><p>There was silence on the other end of the line for a long moment before Wade said, “Okay so it’s too late for me to get an earlier flight back and driving would probably take as long as waiting for my normal flight in the morning…”</p><p>“It’s fine, Wade,” Duke rolled his eyes. “I’ll be here for a year and a half. It’s not like I’m leaving next week.”</p><p>“Yeah, but who knows how long we’ll have before the troubles come back. Assuming you’re still planning to hold me to that promise about leaving when they do.”</p><p>“That’s a very good point and as far as the promise…since Jeanie is refusing to leave, I’m not sure. Let’s just play that one by ear yeah? But if your trouble get’s activated…”</p><p>“I’ll leave then. Absolutely,” Wade vowed. He knew that he wasn’t nearly as strong as his brother. Especially now at almost seventy years old. He wasn’t going to put himself in the path of temptation any more than he had to. “And I’ll see you tomorrow.” </p><p>“See you then,” Duke said as he hung up. </p><p>“That’s good thinking,” Jeanie nodded. “I love Uncle Wade and all, but he’s kind of a pushover. He couldn’t handle it like we could.” </p><p>“Well, I’m still hoping that you won’t have to handle it either,” Duke told her. “But you’re not wrong.” </p><p>“Dinner now?” Audrey asked hopefully, more than a little hungry. </p><p>Jeanie laughed and nodded as they headed out towards the Gull. “Oh look. Uncle Nathan’s here,” she realized as they headed in pointing out Nathan at the bar. </p><p>Duke grinned before turning to the girls. “No hitting this time,” he said mock-sternly. </p><p>“He can hit you himself if he wants to,” Audrey just chuckled.</p><p>“Uncle Wade didn’t have that luxury so we had to do it for him,” Jeanie added with a grin of her own. </p><p>“Women,” Duke rolled his eyes before they walked over to Nathan. “Geez Nate. You got old,” he quipped. </p><p>Nathan blinked at him for a moment, then looked at Audrey with the same blank expression as he tried to process. Then he was up off the stool and grabbed Audrey in a hug first but quickly switched to Duke. “And you didn’t,” he couldn’t help but reply before all the questions slammed into his brain. “How…why…but…” </p><p>“Come on. Why don’t you join us for dinner and we can explain,” Audrey laughed. </p><p>Once they were sitting and explanations were given, Jeanie said, “I’m surprised you’re here alone tonight Uncle Nathan.”</p><p>“Yeah, well. D-…my son is out with friends and my daughter is at a sleepover and my wife is working on some big project for work so I decided to come out and socialize. Maybe catch up with my favorite niece.” </p><p>Jeanie smirked, noticing the way Nathan cut himself off and definitely wanting to see the reactions when they found out, which they would eventually anyway, so she asked, “How are Duke and Audrey? I haven’t seen the rugrats in a while.” </p><p>Nathan shot her a glare as Duke laughed and Audrey just got a touched look on her face. “You named your kids after us?” she asked. </p><p>“Yeah…well…you were supposed to be other people when you came back so…” Nathan shrugged helplessly. What did they expect? They were his two best friends who had sacrificed themselves for him and the whole town. Of course, he named his kids after them. </p><p>“Who’d you end up with? Anyone we know?” Duke asked, seeing that Nathan wasn’t entirely comfortable with the subject, but secretly just as touched as Audrey. </p><p>“I don’t know if you remember Daphne…with the fear trouble…” Nathan told them. </p><p>“You mean the one that almost killed me before we got her out of her wrecked car?” Duke chuckled. “Kinda hard to forget.” </p><p>“Yeah,” Nathan shrugged amusedly. “She and I kinda hit it off once the troubles finally went away and we got married a few years after that.”</p><p>“How old are your kids?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“Duke is sixteen, and thankfully not nearly as much of a handful as his namesake,” Nathan laughed. “And Audrey is fourteen.” </p><p>“Do you two have any kids? Back in the barn world I mean?” Jeanie asked her parents. </p><p>“No, not yet,” Audrey told her. “Since we were only there for twenty years last time and needed a few years to unwind after everything that happened here, we didn’t want to end up leaving them for a year and a half while they were teenagers.”</p><p>“We’re planning to have some next time we go in though, but they won’t ever be able to leave the barn world unfortunately,” Duke told them. </p><p>“James is still there though,” Audrey told Nathan. “He’s married and has a couple kids there now. He sent a journal with pictures for you, but it’s back on the Rouge right now. We can go get it after.” </p><p>“Okay, yeah. Please. I have another one for him too. I’ll bring it by tomorrow,” Nathan told them. </p><p>“I want to see the pictures too,” Jeanie said hopefully. “I mean, he is kinda my step-brother right? Which means his kids are my nieces or nephews.”</p><p>“He definitely considers himself your brother,” Audrey told her, recognizing the same ‘kinda step-family’ evasion she’d used when not sure of her welcome from Audrey. If there was one thing she knew it was the desire for any possible family ties as an orphan. Not that Jeanie was a technical orphan, but she might as well have been. “He always loved seeing the pictures and videos of you that Duke saved. And we have copies of all the same pictures for you too along with more of us.” </p><p>“And I expect to see pictures of more brothers and sisters next time you come,” Jeanie all but ordered, making both Duke and Audrey laugh and agree. </p><p>“Thank you, Nate. For suggesting to Jeanie write me a journal,” Duke said sincerely. </p><p>“I remembered when you said that you would have wanted someone to do that for you when you gave me James’ journal, so how could I not?” Nathan told him as though it should be obvious. </p><p>“Well it still means a lot. Same with you being there for her,” Duke told him. </p><p>“And you being there for my son means a lot to me too,” Nathan admitted. He’d never been as good with talking about feelings and stuff as Duke, but it still needed to be said. </p><p>There was a bit more conversation about James and their life in the barn world with a little about life out here thrown in too, including the fact that Nathan was chief of police again which prompted Duke asked, “So what’s Squatch up to these days?” </p><p>“Well, he’s the leader of the guard now since Vince passed. Obviously, it’s in name only until the troubles come back. Other than that, he’s retired. Wanted to take the down time while he could before all hell broke loose again,” Nathan told them. </p><p>“We’re thinking they won’t get as bad this time,” Audrey explained. “Usually we don’t come back until a few years after they start once they escalate, but since we’re back earlier this time, we should be leaving before they get that bad.” </p><p>“We need an easy cycle after the nightmare of last time,” Duke huffed amusedly. </p><p>Nathan winced at the mention, as he always did when reminded of what he’d done and how many hundreds of people had died because of him. “That would definitely be a good thing.”</p><p>“You’re pretty close to retirement age too aren’t you, Nathan?” Audrey asked, wanting to change the subject on seeing Nathan’s discomfort. </p><p>“I’m only fifty-nine,” he said with mock offense. “I’m still a good ways away. I’m gonna try to hang on until Duke is at least thirty though so he can take over for me. Assuming he decides to become a cop that is. Right now he has his heart set on being a pro baseball player.” </p><p>“He good enough?” Duke asked curiously. </p><p>“He really is,” Jeanie chimed in. </p><p>“He’s the star of his team and they’ve won the national championships two years in a row. He’s made the state all-star team both years, so yeah,” Nathan said proudly. “If nothing else, Audrey is currently definite on her wish to become a cop so she can take over for me instead. She has a lot of time left to change her mind though.”</p><p>“You don’t want her to become a cop?” Audrey picked up from his tone. </p><p>“It’s not that I don’t want her to be a cop, really. I mean, I’m not sexist enough to think that women can’t do the job just as well as men. It’s just…”</p><p>“She’s your little girl and you want to keep her safe,” Duke finished knowingly when Nathan seemed to struggle with a look over at Jeanie. </p><p>“Dads,” Jeanie sighed with an eye roll, but the grin on her face belied her tone.</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By the time they were heading back to the boat and Nathan was headed home, it was late and they were all at least a little overserved. Thankfully, the three headed to the boat had all been living on it long enough for their bodies to automatically compensate for the rock of the ocean and their staggers didn’t increase any with the transition. Since Wade was going to be back the next day, they had made plans to meet up at young Duke’s baseball game on Saturday and meet the rest of Nathan’s family. They forgot the journal in their state but that was okay. There was plenty of time, and they would later realize that they should wait to get Nathan’s until they left anyway so he could keep adding to it. </p><p>The next morning, Duke was up first as he always was. It never seemed to matter how late he went to bed, he was always up with the sun anyway. He slipped over to the Gull and swiped some groceries, making note of what he took to give Jeanie later, and headed back to the Cape Rouge to make up a big breakfast. He was glad that Jeanie had kept his old waffle iron at least though it was in desperate need of cleaning from all the dust and grime that had attached to it over the years of disuse, so that was his first job. While he was cooking, he used one of his down moments to put the bottle of asprin and two glasses of ice water on the table. He knew that Audrey tended towards hangovers and wasn’t sure about Jeanie. He himself was essentially immune to them unless he /really/ overdid it. </p><p>He had killed enough time that it was a little after nine am when the plates were hitting the table just as Audrey came stumbling in looking half dead and Jeanie was right behind her, as perky as ever. Duke chuckled as he handed the asprin to Audrey and slid the water in front of her before the coffee. “I take it you got my hangover immunity,” he told Jeanie amusedly. </p><p>“Yes, I did, and thank you so much for that,” Jeanie grinned. “I definitely didn’t get it from Uncle Wade that’s for sure,” she joked. </p><p>“No, definitely not,” Duke laughed remembering just how bad his brother’s hangovers got. </p><p>“And thanks for breakfast too,” she told him as she took in the whole spread. </p><p>They were just sitting down to eat when they had company. “Duke…” Wade breathed out as he came in, dropping his bag in the floor, not even having been home yet to drop it off. </p><p>Duke was barely fast enough to get to his feet before his brother was hugging the stuffing out of him and Duke chortled as he returned it happily. “It’s great to see you again, Wade.” </p><p>“I can’t believe you’re really here,” Wade said stepping back with his hands on Duke’s shoulders so he could look at him. </p><p>Wade moved over to hug Audrey who stood up to return it with a smile. “I’m so glad you guys are here,” Wade told her. </p><p>“So are we,” Audrey said cheerfully. </p><p>“Grab a plate. I made plenty,” Duke told his brother who didn’t hesitate to do so. Once he was sitting, Duke told him, “Thank you for Jeanie. You did a great job with her.” </p><p>“Even though she’s a bar maid?” Wade teased, having figured out that his brother had been messing with him. </p><p>“Hey if she wants to be a bar maid she can be a bar maid,” Duke laughed. </p><p>“I am /not/ a bar maid,” Jeanie said in mock offense. “I happen to be a small business owner thank you very much,” she stuck her nose in the air. </p><p>“Whatever you say sweetie,” Wade said in playful condescension as he patted her shoulder and got a smack for it as they all chuckled, Jeanie included. </p><p>Breakfast was filled with light conversation and plenty of laughter and jokes before they moved to the stateroom to relax and Duke brought up a heavier subject. “So how did she take it when you told her about the troubles and why I really left?” he asked his brother. </p><p>“Not very well,” Wade admitted. “She was pissed at having been lied to for so long.”</p><p>“I like to think that if you had been here, you would have seen how mature I was and let me in on the secret sooner,” Jeanie added. “But since you weren’t and Uncle Wade was just following your wishes, I got over it.” </p><p>“Would you have been less mad about the secrets if you’d been told sooner though?” Audrey asked knowingly. </p><p>Jeanie thought about it for a minute before admitting, “Probably not. But just for the record, I do understand now and I’m not mad anymore.”</p><p>“I’m glad to hear that,” Duke said relieved. </p><p>“She threw a pretty massive tantrum at the time though,” Wade continued. “Didn’t speak to me for almost a month.” </p><p>“Okay that was as much because of the way you came in and dragged me out of that party as it was the secrets,” Jeanie had to point out. </p><p>“You were sixteen years old and snuck out in the middle of the night to a college frat party. Do you blame me?” Wade asked pointedly. </p><p>“Now, no,” Jeanie told him. “At the time, definitely.”</p><p>Audrey snorted amusedly and shook her head. “She’s definitely your daughter,” she muttered to Duke, only able to find the amusement in it because it turned out okay. </p><p>“I’ll have you know I never snuck out to a party in the middle of the night,” Duke pointed out, just as amused. </p><p>“You manifested your rebellion in different ways, but it’s all the same underneath,” Audrey told him. He hadn’t even had anyone to sneak away /from/ at that age anyway and had never been much for parties. </p><p>“I acted out a bit due to anger,” Jeanie said with a sheepish shrug. </p><p>“Thank you for going after her anyway,” Audrey told Wade, knowing that Duke felt the same way but wasn’t about to take the ‘uncool’ stance by saying it. </p><p>“Yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever said it before either, but yeah. Thank you, Uncle Wade. Looking back now and thinking of what could have happened…” Jeanie shuddered. </p><p>“It was kinda my job,” Wade said with a smile, reaching over to ruffle Jeanie’s hair. Getting the thanks for it definitely made him feel good though. Even though it was from so long ago. “And you definitely didn’t make it easy for a while. I blame your father’s genes.”</p><p>Duke laughed. “I can’t really argue with that.” </p><p>“And let me just say that I was very glad that Nathan had Daphne already by the time she hit puberty,” Wade chuckled at that memory. </p><p>Jeanie burst into laughter despite her blush. “It was /hilarious/…when I started my first period, I already knew what was going on of course from school and everything, but having to ask Uncle Wade to get me some pads was kinda nervewracking. The look on his face when I did though was priceless.”</p><p>Audrey couldn’t help but laugh with her, as did Duke, but his was with a look of sympathy for his brother. “I can only imagine,” Audrey said through her laughter. </p><p>“He just stood there with this look of pure terror on his face for like a full minute before he grabbed his phone, called Aunt Daphne and told her to come over right away. She comes up about ten minutes later and bursts in like she’s expecting someone to be dying or something and I was so embarrassed I couldn’t say a word, so Uncle Wade is trying to explain, but can’t really get the words out either. Once she figured it out, I could tell that she was trying very hard not to laugh and be sympathetic and when she went to get a pad from her emergency stash in her car, we could hear her laughter as soon as she got out of the room.”</p><p>“God, I wish I had been there,” Audrey said, wiping the tears from her eyes from laughing so hard. “It’s good that you had a woman to help you at least.” </p><p>“Yeah, she took me shopping for pads and gave me some good tips. She also took me shopping for my first bras and stuff not long after that. She told me to just call her when I needed girl stuff so I didn’t traumatize Uncle Wade any more than I already had,” Jeanie laughed. </p><p>“Hey, I did my best, but some things were out of my league,” Wade admitted amusedly, able to see the humor in it after so long. </p><p>“That’s okay. If I ever find myself in that position, I’m sure I’ll be screaming for Audrey to handle it too,” Duke admitted through his own laughter. </p><p>“I have no doubt,” Audrey said wryly. </p><p>The next few hours were spent with stories being traded back and forth, mostly of things that Jeanie wouldn’t have thought to mention like her rebellious stages before they headed to the Gull for lunch. After lunch, Audrey offered to do some grocery shopping for the Rouge so that Duke could cook without having to swipe ingredients from the restaurant, but not wanting to take Duke away from his family right now. She made it a quick trip though and they waited until she got back to pull out the photo albums which took up most of the afternoon and Wade told them that he’d made copies of his albums for them so that Duke could see Jeanie growing up and he headed up to get them. Duke and Audrey also promised to copy any pictures that they wanted from their album, especially since Jeanie had latched onto the idea of having a brother in James and was so happy to see his family.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After dinner, Wade suggested a brother’s night, at the bar so Audrey suggested a mom/daughter night in and much bonding was done on both sides. The next day, once they’d nursed Wade through his hangover, the whole group made for the ballfield where Duke and Audrey met their namesakes and saw Daphne again and even Dwight was there and joined the Crockers and Wuornos’ for lunch after the game. Both of Nathan’s kids were beyond excited to meet their namesakes. It was over lunch that the story of Duke saving Daphne from her car came up and was told with great relish by Daphne who still considered Duke her savior. Once it was over Jeanie snorted amusedly and said, “And you don’t think you’re a hero.” </p><p>“He had his moments,” Nathan joked, knowing that the fact that he’d named his son after him showed what he really thought. </p><p>“It wasn’t that big of a deal,” Duke just shrugged. </p><p>“Duke, you activated your trouble to get me out of there,” Daphne pointed out. “I didn’t really appreciate how big of a thing that was until much later, but I know now how much you hated using it. How dangerous it was. How awful it was for you. But you did it to save my life. It is most definitely a big deal.” </p><p>Duke quickly changed the subject to one of Nathan’s many hero moments and that started a competition that Audrey and Dwight ended up being dragging into too that spanned the rest of lunch and a few hours after leaving the kids and Wade with a new appreciation for the struggles that they’d been through. They did keep the stories appropriate for fourteen year old Audrey as the youngest of the group, leaving out some of the worst ones, but by the end they all agreed that all four of them were heroes and simultaneously hoped that they would never have to experience something like that and were quickly promised that it would never get that bad again. </p><p>At the end of the day, Nathan offered Audrey her badge back, but she declined. For now. She promised to take it back once the troubles started, but at the moment she just wanted to take the time and reconnect to people and Nathan completely understood that. The next few months were spent doing just that until they got their first sign of the troubles and like usual, it started with Nathan’s, brought on by a fight with a suspect. Knowing that he would only have to live with it for a year this time helped Nathan to cope, but it didn’t make him feel any better when his son ended up activating his too when he got hit in the head with a line drive during the championship game and fractured his skull. The only saving grace was that the season was over and the troubles would be gone before the next season started. He couldn’t exactly play ball without the ability to feel. </p><p>Once the troubles came back, Dwight picked up a badge too, but Duke refused when it was offered. It didn’t matter how much time had passed, there wasn’t a chance in hell of him ever carrying a badge. He was good with helping out when he was needed, but he would be a cop over his dead body. Both Audrey and Jeanie spent his entire rant giggling on the couch after Audrey relayed the offer. She knew exactly what he was going to say, but he was just so adorable when he was on a rant. Jeanie definitely appreciated it too and had definitely heard all of those words before. Even the anatomically impossible parts though she was rather impressed with her dad’s ability to string them all together so seamlessly. His rant ended with him throwing a pillow at them both and just degenerated from there. </p><p>As they expected, the troubles didn’t get nearly as bad as they had last time, even before the incident with the barn. Unfortunately, all the theories were wrong and Jeanie did end up with the Crocker family curse, and got it activated when a trouble invaded the Gull. Duke rushed in just as her eyes started glowing silver and he quickly told Audrey to handle that one and got everyone away from Jeanie before standing a good five feet away from her, between her and anyone else with his hands held out to his sides. “It’s okay baby,” he said softly. “You just have to focus. Remember that you don’t want to hurt anybody and push the feeling away.” It took a few more minutes for him to talk her through it before the glow in her eyes faded and she started to slump. Duke closed the distance in a single stride and caught her, pulling her into a hug. </p><p>“God, Dad. That was…it was…” She realized now that no description in the world could have prepared her for that. To feel that incredible rush and the bloodlust pulling along with it. She definitely understood now why it scared her dad so much. Both his and the idea of her going through it. She remembered the stories about him using it to help people and the times she’d /seen/ him use it to help people this time around and she marveled at how strong he had to be. She had barely been able to keep herself from killing people, much less be able to be that close to a troubled person and help them instead. </p><p>“I know, baby,” Duke said sympathetically as he ran a hand through her hair glancing back to see that Audrey had the other troubled person mostly calmed down and was handling the crowd now so he was free to keep his attention on his daughter. “I know. It’s okay. Why don’t we head back to the Rouge? Get you a nice stiff drink and you can rest.” </p><p>“Yeah. Okay,” she said trying her best to hold back her tears, but she only lasted until she had a drink in her hand and her father pulled her to his side in a hug. </p><p>“It’s not too late for you to leave town you know,” he offered. “I can still go with you.”</p><p>“No,” she shook her head emphatically. “No you’re needed here. Anyone can see that. And I’m not losing a minute of the last few months we have left. Not for anything.” </p><p>“Jeanie, if you lose control of this thing…” </p><p>“I won’t,” she said firmly pulling herself together and sitting up to look at him. “I know what it feels like now. I can fight it. I know I can. I don’t know if I could be strong enough to use it to help people like you, but I can be strong enough to get away from people without hurting anybody. And I’ll try my best never to trigger it again. I promise, Dad. I’ll be okay.” </p><p>Duke reached both his hands to her cheeks and looked her in the eyes, seeing her conviction there and he was relatively sure that he was right, but he still had to say, “How about we make a deal? I’ll stop arguing about it and let you stay, but the first time you lose control and hurt someone, you have to leave without question, okay?” </p><p>“Okay,” she nodded. She could make that promise. Because the last thing she wanted was to hurt people and if she was wrong about being able to control it leaving was the best option. </p><p>“Let me talk to your dad alone for a moment?” Wade asked as he came in, having heard what had happened. Jeanie nodded and headed up to the deck, watching the Gull from a distance as Audrey walked out the door with the troubled guy who started the whole thing and led him gently to the cars.</p><p>Once they were alone, Wade turned to Duke and said, “Kill me.”</p><p>“You have /got/ to be kidding me,” Duke said incredulously. </p><p>“I’m not. Think about it, Duke. I’m old. I don’t have more than a few good years left, if that. If we activate my trouble and then you kill me…you save Jeanie, her children, grandchildren, every Crocker to come in the future, from ever having to carry this burden again.”</p><p>“And what about the burden of killing my own brother?” Duke asked pointedly. “How do you think Jeanie will feel if I do this? If I kill the man who raised her for her entire life. To save /her/. You don’t think she’ll blame herself? She shouldn’t but she would. I know I would in her shoes. How do you expect me to ever look her in the eye again if I go through with it? How do you expect me to look at /myself/ in the mirror every day?” </p><p>“You both need to understand that it’s my decision,” Wade said firmly. </p><p>“No,” Duke shook his head. “It’s not. Because /I’m/ the one who has to go through with it. That makes it /my/ decision. And I won’t do it. Not a chance in hell.” </p><p>“Think about what you’re dooming Jeanie to,” Wade argued. “Think about all the pain you could save future generations. And all you have to do is kill an old man who’ll probably be dead in a few years anyway.”</p><p>Duke shoved his brother against the wall, fisting his hands in his shirt. “I said. NO,” Duke snapped. “The troubles will be gone again in a few months. She’ll be more careful next time around. She’ll teach her kids to be more careful. I might even be able to talk them into leaving town if she’s got kids to protect. But this here…it is /not/ happening. Period. Don’t /ever/ ask me again.” </p><p>Jeanie was still sitting on the deck with her drink watching the sunset when Wade came storming up and walked off without a word and then Duke came up not long after with his own drink and the bottle to refill hers. He sank onto the futon next to her, eyes looking like he’d aged a decade in the last ten minutes. “He wanted you to activate his curse and kill him didn’t he?” she asked. </p><p>“What makes you say that?” Duke asked. </p><p>“Because that’s what I would do in his position,” she shrugged. “And if I was in yours I would have said no too.” </p><p>“Sometimes you’re too smart for your own good,” Duke huffed and she just smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder. “How do you know I said no?” </p><p>Jeanie snorted. “Dad, I have both seen and heard stories of you going to the ends of the earth to avoid killing anyone in much more serious situations than this. And yeah, I’m your daughter and you’d be more likely to do it to save me, but the fact that he’s your brother balances that out. I think that if it was life or death, you’d do what you needed to do, but this isn’t anywhere near that point and it won’t get that far.” </p><p>“Do you think I’m doing the right thing?” Duke couldn’t help but ask. </p><p>“Yes,” she said seriously. “And not because he’s my uncle and I love him. Or because I don’t want to be rid of this trouble or save my kids from it. But because of what it will do to /you/. What’s the point of saving me from something manageable if you lose yourself in the process? I couldn’t live with that any more than I could live with losing Uncle Wade like that. I will take this curse over either of those options any day.” </p><p>Duke sighed, feeling much better with his decision now, and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, kissing the top of her head. “Thank you. I think I needed to hear that right now.”</p><p>“I know. And I needed to make sure you knew it,” she replied softly. </p><p>“Jeanie, next time the troubles come around it’ll be worse,” Duke warned. </p><p>“I know. But just like this time I’ll be as careful as I can.”</p><p>“And if you have children then?” he pointed out. </p><p>“If they’re still children and they end up activating their curse, I’ll get them out of town. If they’re grown it’ll be their decision, but I’ll definitely argue it just as much as you are,” she told him. That was as far as she was willing to go and really once they were grown she would have no control over them anyway any more than he could control her. </p><p>“I guess that’s good enough,” Duke sighed.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm trying to decide if Wade is going to pull what he did in the show to force Duke to kill him or if he'll just drop it. I would appreciate any opinions on the matter. Drop a comment and let me know what you think.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Never mind the last note. I had an even better idea.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Wade paced in his room, trying to come up with another idea. Some way to force this issue with his brother. Really, he could understand where Duke was coming from. Killing your brother should only be a true last resort. Which meant that he had to find a way to /make/ it a last resort. He finally had an idea and then set to revising it. Making sure there weren’t any holes. That it was completely foolproof. At least as much as humanly possible. By the time night fell, he had it all figured out and started to work. </p><p>Wade was glad that he had helped out on a few troubled cases. It made it easier to find the people he needed at least. He knew that he didn’t stand a chance at a fight at his age, so he had to find another way. Which was why his first stop was to the chemical supply store to steal some Ether. He then visited the homes of six troubled people, dosing them in their sleep, and getting them out to his SUV. Getting them up the stairs to his apartment was an adventure and he was feeling every one of his seventy years when he was done. </p><p>He had less than an hour before the sun came up and Duke would be awake so he set to staging the scene. First he dosed them all yet again to make sure that they stayed out and then lined up his six dining chairs near the back of the room in front of the door and put a person in each one, tying them with ropes to keep them upright. He got his barstool that he used at the counter and put it behind the first person in line, a young woman and tested to make sure he was at the right height sitting on it so that just his head was in view from the door. </p><p>Wade knew that one life for one life would be an acceptable deal for Duke, as much as the choice would gut him, but six lives…Duke would never sacrifice six lives for him. Not when saving his daughter and all his future descendants was part of the bargain too. He pulled out his knife and made a small nick on the woman’s neck. He had to make sure this would work first. He caught the blood dripping down with his finger and nearly fell off his stool as he felt it working. The feeling was so much more than words could ever describe though he had to admit Duke had probably gotten as close as possible. When he felt himself losing control, he went and locked himself in the bathroom. It wouldn’t do to lose it too soon. He didn’t actually /want/ to hurt anyone. He wanted his brother to stop him. Once the wave had passed, he returned to his stool behind his prisoners and called his brother. </p><p>Audrey had gotten called in early. The chemical store was broken into and ether was stolen and there were six troubled people missing from their beds. The sun wasn’t even up yet when Nathan’s call woke her up and she rushed out with a quick kiss for Duke who had been woken by the call too. Duke had just barely gotten back to sleep when his phone rang and he huffed as he answered, assuming it was Audrey or Nathan needing his help with the case. He was a little surprised when it turned out to be Wade asking him to come up and help him with something urgently and to come alone. Something in his brother’s voice made him nervous and he thought of the missing troubled people. If someone was after Wade too…if he was being held hostage or something…that ‘come alone’ was telling enough. Duke grabbed his gun and put it in the back of his pants before heading up. </p><p>When Wade heard the footsteps rushing up the stairs, he moved his hand back to the cut on the woman’s neck and his eyes started glowing just as Duke came bursting in, gun drawn and then stopped in shock. “Wade…what is this?” he asked worriedly, feeling his heart nearly stop at the glow in his brother’s eyes. </p><p>“This is me saving Jeanie,” Wade told him, desperately fighting for control that he was losing. “You kill me…or I kill all of these people and then keep going until you do.”</p><p>“Don’t do this, Wade,” Duke begged. “Please don’t make me do this.”</p><p>“It’s too late,” Wade told him. “I can’t hold on much longer. I…I /need/ to kill them. It’s too strong. I can’t control it. You /have/ to do it.” </p><p>“I can’t, Wade. Please,” Duke begged, gun shaking in his hands as it pointed at the floor in front of the prisoners. </p><p>Suddenly Wade’s eyes went wide as he fixed on a point behind Duke and he breathed out, “No…” just before he lost the last of his control and raised the knife to kill the woman. </p><p>Before Duke could even get his gun raised a shot rang out from behind him and he spun around to see Jeanie standing there as her hand spasmed open and her gun fell to the floor and she hit her knees right after it and started vomiting. Duke shoved his gun back into his pants as he closed the distance between them falling to his own knees right beside her, pulling back her hair with one hand and rubbing her back with the other. When she broke down into sobs, Duke held her tightly, shielding her face from the scene in front of them as he felt his own tears welling up in his eyes. “Jeanie…baby…”</p><p>“I’m sorry, Daddy. I’m so sorry,” she babbled brokenly. </p><p>“Shh, shh, shh,” Duke shushed her gently, running his hand through his hair. “You didn’t do anything wrong baby. It’s okay. I’ve got you.” </p><p>Neither Nathan nor Audrey wanted to believe what the evidence was telling them, but misunderstanding or not, they still needed to talk to Wade. When they got up there and walked in on Duke holding a sobbing Jeanie and then took in the rest of the scene they gasped. “What happened?” Nathan was the first to recover to ask. </p><p>“I did it,” Duke said quickly. “He didn’t give me a choice. He wanted me to kill him to end our trouble.” </p><p>Audrey and Nathan both noticed the same things off the bat. While Duke was a good shot, right between the eyes was a one in a million shot for him, but Nathan knew that Jeanie could do it. Not to mention Jeanie’s gun that Nathan recognized, having gotten it for her, sitting haphazardly on the floor and the fact that the bullet hole in Wade’s forehead was far too small to have come from the forty four behind Duke’s back. They all knew what happened there, but they all let the lie go. “Okay. I think it’s pretty clear that this was a good shoot, but we are gonna need a statement from you at some point. For now though, go ahead and take Jeanie home. We’ll take care of this,” Nathan told him. </p><p>“Duke…” Audrey met his eyes with worry and he gave her a shaky smile. </p><p>“We’ll be okay. You just take care of Wade for me, okay?” he asked her, blinking back his tears as he tightened his grip on Jeanie who was beyond words at all by this point. </p><p>“I’ll be home as soon as I can,” she promised, getting a nod from him.</p><p>Duke went to lead Jeanie out but she couldn’t seem to get her legs to work and stumbled so he bent down and picked her up, carrying her back to the boat and then sitting down on the couch in the stateroom, holding her on his lap like he’d never gotten the chance to do when she was a little girl as she cried on his shoulder. Eventually she managed a few words and she croaked out, “Please don’t hate me, Daddy?” </p><p>Duke just tightened his grip and pressed his lips to her forehead, carding his fingers through her hair. “There is not a force in this world that could ever make me hate you for anything, Jeanie,” he whispered against her skin. “I love you more than you could ever imagine, baby. Now and always. No matter what.” </p><p>“I just couldn’t let you do it, Daddy. I’m so sorry,” she cried, losing the ability for words again and Duke just sat there, a hundred questions running through his head, but deciding to wait until she was a little more together for the talk he knew they needed to have. For now, he just rocked her and whispered soothing words and it was almost lunchtime before she cried herself to sleep. </p><p>Duke had just put her in bed and tucked her in, wishing he could have done so in better circumstances when she was young enough to appreciate it, when he walked out and ran into Audrey. He put a finger over his lips as he shut the door to her room and they headed back to the stateroom. “How is she?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“Not good,” he sighed. “You got everything taken care of.”</p><p>“All the troubled people that were abducted are fine and none of them saw anything. They were out cold the whole time,” she gave him the easy part first before saying, “Nathan and I know what really happened up there. Not everything of course, but…” </p><p>“Let me guess. Nathan was talking obstruction charges?” Duke said wearily. </p><p>“No,” Audrey shook her head, not blaming him for the assumption given the state his head must be in right now. “He wrote it up like you said except the perp was a John Doe and Wade died peacefully in his sleep of a heart attack.” There was no way they were going to run his name through the mud. Not when they completely understood why he did it, not that they agreed of course, and knowing how it would affect Jeanie if it got out what he’d done. </p><p>“Thank him for me?” Duke asked hollowly as he plopped onto the couch and put his head in his hands. </p><p>Audrey sat next to him and rubbed his back as she rested her head on his still damp shoulder. “Tomorrow. I took the rest of the day off,” she told him. “Did she say anything?” </p><p>“Just that she was sorry, begging me not to hate her, and…and that she did it for me,” Duke swallowed around the lump in his throat as the first tears leaked from his eyes. </p><p>“For you?” Audrey asked heartbrokenly. </p><p>“She…she didn’t want me to have to do it. I didn’t get much more than that. I figured it was best to talk about it once she was a little more together,” Duke explained. </p><p>“I can understand that,” Audrey agreed, meaning that for both parts of that statement, not that Duke realized that. “How are /you/?” she asked. </p><p>“I need…” Duke trailed off, but Audrey knew what he meant. Well the only thing he meant that she could do anything about at least and she got up and went and poured them both a drink and came back and handed his to him. He took it with a shaking hand and tossed it back and she quickly refilled it. This time he just sipped at it as he lost himself in his head. </p><p>Audrey ran a hand through his hair and kissed his temple, just being there for him as he tried to get his head straight, wishing there was more she could do to help, but knowing that there wasn’t. All she could do was be here to support him in any way she could. And to support Jeanie once she woke up. “She’ll be okay,” Audrey said after a while. Duke gave a skeptical snort. “She will be, and you know why?” </p><p>“Why?” Duke croaked out. </p><p>“Because she’s a Crocker. And Crockers are the strongest people I’ve ever known. There’s nothing that a Crocker can’t handle,” she said confidently, hoping against hope that she was right. Wade had sacrificed his life to save Jeanie from the Crocker curse. Jeanie had taken on this burden to save Duke from carrying it. Duke sacrificed everything time and again to save everyone. She just hoped that with the curse over, the Crockers could be left alone from now on. Aside from the sacrifice Duke would keep having to make by going into the barn of course.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Duke and Audrey sat in silence for a long time before Duke got up without a word to start making lunch. He just needed to be doing something right now. Lunch was just hitting the table when Jeanie came out of her room, eyes still rimmed red and puffy from crying, but she had obviously cleaned up a little before she came out because the tear tracks were gone from her face and her hair showed no signs of the fingers that had run through it for two hours much less sleep. She sat down at the table and lunch was spent in an uncomfortable silence. Every person at the table had opened their mouths to say something at least once and then stopped. </p><p>As they finished cleaning their plates, Jeanie was the first one to find words. “I’m sorry that it had to be done. That Uncle Wade did what he did to save me. But I’m not sorry that I’m the one that did it,” she said shakily. </p><p>Duke closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Come on. Let’s go sit someplace more comfortable and talk,” he said reaching his hand out to her. </p><p>“I’ll clean up in here,” Audrey offered, giving them some space to talk about it and standing by to pick up the pieces for both of them. </p><p>Jeanie took Duke’s hand to get up and they went into the stateroom and sat on the couch before Duke asked. “Why?” </p><p>“Like I said yesterday. I can’t live with losing you both. If you had been the one to do it, it would have torn you apart…”</p><p>“And it’s not going to do the same to you?” Duke asked pointedly. </p><p>“No,” she shook her head. “It’s hurts yeah. It’s hard and it will be for a while. But I can handle it. Because I know that there was only one way that could end. He was too far gone. I know that I loved him dearly always. Other than the normal teenage angst, we’ve never been anything but close. You didn’t have that luxury. Some part of you would always have wondered if some old grudge from the past played a part. If you had chosen me over him. If there was anything you could have done differently…”</p><p>“It’s my job to protect you, Jeanie. Not the other way around,” Duke told her gently. </p><p>“Not anymore it’s not,” Jeanie shook her head. “I’m not a kid anymore, Dad. I’m an adult and I make my own choices. We’re family and we protect /each other/.” </p><p>“Still…”</p><p>“Dad,” she cut him off softly, reaching over to take his hand. “You’re immortal now remember? You would have to carry this for the rest of eternity and you already carry so many burdens. /Too/ many burdens. Let me carry this one.” </p><p>“I don’t really have a choice now do I. What’s done is done,” Duke sighed. “I don’t believe you’re as okay as you’re pretending to be, though.”</p><p>“I’m not,” she admitted. “But I will be. I’m sorry I fell apart like that. And threw up on you,” she said sheepishly. </p><p>“I did the same thing the one and only time I killed someone,” he told her. “The only time I ever used the Crocker family curse that way.” </p><p>“You lost control of it once?” she asked confused. </p><p>“No. It was fully intentional,” he told her. “I’m guessing no one ever told you that story?” She shook her head and leaned against his side, guessing that he was about to tell her now. </p><p>“There was a man with a…horrible trouble. This guy…his organs were shutting down, but he had the ability to harvest more from his family members, killing them in the process.”</p><p>“And he did?” she asked disgustedly with a shudder. “I would have just let myself die before I did that.”</p><p>“Me too,” Duke told her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. He just hoped that sharing this story would help her with what she was dealing with. “But he didn’t. What made it worse was that he knew about his trouble in advance and prepared ahead, working at a fertility clinic and switching his own sperm with the samples so he had something like a hundred kids out there or more that he could harvest from.”</p><p>“Oh god,” she breathed out. </p><p>“And even worse, every time he was interrupted in the act…it would activate the same trouble in his kids.” </p><p>“And the only way to stop it was for the Crocker family curse to kill one of them,” Jeanie realized. </p><p>“He was dying anyway. We caught him and we weren’t about to keep feeding him kids to keep him alive, but all I could see was a dying helpless man that Audrey wanted me to murder in cold blood. I walked away. I couldn’t do it. Then I got back to the cars and saw the ten year old boy we just saved start to turn. I went back and suffocated him with my bare hands. Then I made it about ten yards away before I fell to my knees and threw up everything in my stomach. Then came back to the Gull, kicked everyone out, closed the place, and sat in the dark and got blind drunk.” </p><p>“I’m so sorry, Dad,” she said sympathetically. </p><p>“Me too. I’m sorry that it came to that. But I’m not sorry that I did it. Not anymore. I did what had to be done to save lives. Just like you did,” he told her. “But I still wish you never had to know that feeling.”</p><p>“If wishes were fishes we’d all live in the sea,” she said wryly, remembering how many times she’d been told that growing up. </p><p>“Well we do live on a boat,” Duke couldn’t help but respond. </p><p>Jeanie barked a laugh at that. “You know, that’s what I always told Uncle Wade when he told me that. Then he’d give me a playful swat and call me a scamp.” She felt her tears welling back up as that memory was overlaid with the one from this morning. “I’m gonna miss him.”</p><p>Duke pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. “I know baby. Me too,” he whispered. “But try to remember that he did it because he loved you just as much as you love him.” </p><p>“I know. That makes it both easier and harder,” she admitted. “But eventually it’ll just be easier.” </p><p>Duke sat back to look seriously at her. “I want you to promise me something, Jeanie. I want you to talk to someone about this.”</p><p>“I’m talking to you,” she said confused. </p><p>“I mean a professional. A shrink. One who knows about the troubles and has dealt with them before. Your Uncle Nathan or Dwight should be able to find someone for you. I mean, yeah I want you to keep talking with me about it. And Audrey if you’re comfortable with that. But we’re only going to be here for a few more months and I need to know that you’ll be okay after I’m gone. Will you do that for me?” </p><p>“Yeah. I will. I promise,” she told him. She could see the need for it too, though she probably wouldn’t have thought of it herself. “On one condition,” she added, realizing that there was something she wanted from him too. </p><p>“What condition?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. </p><p>“You have to promise to do your best not to blame yourself for any of this,” she told him. </p><p>Duke sighed, but nodded. “Okay. It won’t be easy, but I’ll do my best.” </p><p>“That’s all I can ask for,” she gave him a shaky smile and kissed his cheek. “I’m gonna go get some air.” He nodded and squeezed her hand as she got up and walked out, leaving him alone with his thoughts. </p><p>When Jeanie got up to the deck she found Audrey sitting on the futon with her legs tucked under her looking out over the water. Audrey looked up as she came out. “Drink?” she offered, holding up her bottle in invitation. </p><p>“God yes,” Jeanie breathed out taking the bottle and drinking straight from it as she sat down. </p><p>“You okay?” Audrey asked her gently. </p><p>“I will be,” she told her. </p><p>“Well I know that,” Audrey smiled, bumping her shoulder in solidarity. “Like I told your dad. You’re a Crocker. No one’s stronger than a Crocker.” She saw Jeanie puff up a bit in pride at that. “But that’s not what I asked,” she added. </p><p>“Dad wants to me to see a shrink,” Jeanie sighed. </p><p>“That’s not a bad idea,” Audrey told her. “You know that in law enforcement we’re required to do that any time we kill someone on the job? And the shrink has to sign off on us returning to duty?” </p><p>“I didn’t think of that,” Jeanie said thoughtfully. “I already promised to go anyway, but I made Dad promise to do his best not to blame himself in return.” </p><p>“Thank you for that. And I’ll try to help him live up to that promise,” Audrey assured her. </p><p>“I know. That’s why I told you,” Jeanie said with a sly smile. “So you can use it against him whenever he gets all broody.” </p><p>“You do know him well,” Audrey chuckled. </p><p>“I /am/ a Crocker. It runs in the family,” she said amusedly. </p><p>“I get why you did it you know,” Audrey told her. “I would never have wanted him to have to live with that either.”</p><p>“He already takes the weight of the world on his shoulders. He doesn’t need any more,” Jeanie said. </p><p>“I would never have wanted you to live with that either though,” Audrey still had to say. </p><p>“It had to be one of us,” Jeanie pointed out. “Otherwise the curse wouldn’t have ended and it would have all been for nothing.”</p><p>“I know,” Audrey said sadly. “And any time you need to talk about it…as long as I’m here anyway…you can come to me. Or your Dad. We both completely understand what you’re going through.”</p><p>“He told me about the guy who was stealing organs from his kids,” Jeanie told her. </p><p>“That day has always been one of my greatest regrets,” Audrey sighed. </p><p>“Why? Because you asked him to do it?” Jeanie asked confused. </p><p>“No. Because I knew that it was going to come to that and didn’t tell him until the last minute. I thought that the less time he had to agonize over it the better, but it didn’t dawn on me until later when he yelled at me for it that what I ended up doing was making the decision for him by not giving him time to make his own.” </p><p>“He did make his own though, you know,” Jeanie told her, wanting to ease her mind. “He said he walked away, but then /he/ decided when he saw the kid start to turn that he had to do it so he went back.”</p><p>“He never told me that,” Audrey sighed. “I went to find him that night and asked him what happened once I realized that everyone had been cured, but he didn’t say anything and just walked out. Neither of us ever brought it up again after that.” </p><p>“Well he didn’t say it in so many words, but it was implied that he forgives you for it if that helps.” </p><p>“It does. Thank you,” Audrey smiled gratefully at her, once again marveling at the persistence of Crockers. Here she was trying to make Jeanie feel better, but Jeanie was the one making /her/ feel better instead. “I had to kill someone once too,” she told her, deciding that if Duke shared his story, maybe hers could help too. </p><p>“What happened?” Jeanie asked curiously. </p><p>“There was a man. Reverend Driscoll. He was very anti-troubled. Thought that they were all agents of Satan and had to be cleansed from the Earth or something. He was nuts.” </p><p>“Sounds like it,” Jeanie huffed a laugh. </p><p>“He and his followers were hunting for three little troubled girls in the woods. They were just kids. The youngest was seven and the oldest was sixteen. He caught the fourteen year old and was about to kill her. He had the knife raised when I shot him.” </p><p>“So did Uncle Wade,” she said hauntedly. </p><p>“Then you did the right thing,” Audrey assured her. “Don’t think of it like killing him. You /saved/ six lives. You saved /him/ from becoming a murderer.” </p><p>“He was trying to fight it, but it couldn’t,” Jeanie said sadly, sinking into Audrey’s embrace when the arm wrapped around her shoulders. “I don’t think he would have gone through with it otherwise. I think he intended it to be a bluff. But the…the bloodlust…it’s so strong. He couldn’t control it.” </p><p>“His fate was sealed the moment he activated his curse,” Audrey told her gently. </p><p>“No. His fate was sealed the moment I activated mine,” Jeanie sighed, blinking the tears from her eyes again. “As soon as he heard he asked Dad to kill him to save me, but Dad said no. That’s why he’s going to blame himself.” </p><p>“And why you blame yourself it sounds like,” Audrey probed lightly. </p><p>“A little yeah,” she admitted. </p><p>“It wasn’t your fault any more than it was your dad’s,” Audrey told her. “It wasn’t like you went out and intentionally activated it like Wade did. You were even smart enough to stay out of the trouble mess altogether. You couldn’t have known that it would come to you. You were just innocently doing your job when all hell broke loose.” </p><p>“I /know/ that, but…/feeling/ it is a lot harder, you know?” </p><p>“I do know,” Audrey gave her shoulders a squeeze. “But as long as you /know/ it, the feeling it will come in time.” </p><p>“You’re really good at this, Mom,” she said with a sigh. “I guess I know what people mean now when they call you the trouble-whisperer.” </p><p>Audrey chuckled and leaned her head against Jeanie’s. “It’s a gift.” </p><p>After a long silence Jeanie asked, “Dad isn’t going to get in any trouble for taking the blame is he? I didn’t want him to.”</p><p>“No, sweetie. He’s not in any trouble. And neither are you. Uncle Nathan knows what really happened, but we’re burying the evidence. No one else will know unless you want them to, but no one’s in trouble or blaming him at all so don’t feel like you need to save him from anything by confessing.”</p><p>“Okay. I don’t know if I want anyone else to know or not,” she sighed. </p><p>“You don’t have to decide any time soon. You can take your time and decide who to trust with the secret whenever you’re ready.” </p><p>“Yeah, you’re right,” Jeanie realized relieved, taking one more swig from the bottle before handing it back to Audrey. “You should go talk to Dad. I think he could use one of your pep talks too.” Audrey could tell that she was feeling steadier and just needed some time alone to process so she just kissed the top of her head and got up to head inside. It was time for phase two.</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Wade’s funeral was a few days later and Nathan, Jeanie, and Duke all spoke. Nathan talked about what kind of man Wade was. Jeanie talked about growing up with him and Duke talked about how much he owed his brother for taking in his daughter when he couldn’t and told a few childhood stories about him. It was a difficult day for all of them, but the public story that he had a heart attack was kept by the fact that Wade was cremated as he’d wanted. The family took the Rouge out and spread his ashes at sea. </p><p>Jeanie got started in therapy the next week. Though Daphne was a therapist, she admitted that issues like Jeanie’s weren’t her specialty and they all wanted her to have the best, so they reached out through the guard and found someone. Jeanie gave permission for the therapist to tell her parents, in general, how she was doing, but details would stay between them. Both Duke and Audrey were glad to hear that she was coping as well as could be expected in the situation, but fully healing would take time. She would get there though. </p><p>When the time came to leave, it was without the armed escort this time. Nathan was there, but Daphne and the kids had declined to come. Daphne said that with only a few minutes, all of the time would be taken up with introductions. James could see and read about them in Nathan’s journal. Jeanie was obviously there for Duke and Audrey, but she did want to meet her brother too and promised a full report to young Duke and Audrey about their shared brother. </p><p>They got there to find Howard and James standing outside as usual and the first order of business was hugs between James and Duke and Audrey. They were quick though since they could catch up inside. Audrey did whisper to James though, “Jeanie wants to be your sister, but isn’t sure of her reception.” </p><p>James nodded against her shoulder and once he released Duke, he turned to Jeanie and held out his arms. “Hugs for your big brother?” he asked hopefully and she nearly tackled him with one. </p><p>Jeanie wasn’t going to take up too much of James’ time, knowing that this was the only time that Nathan got with his son and there was a good chance this would be the last time he’d see him. Next time they came around he would be almost ninety. She could live with knowing him through stories and pictures as she did. Once she had hugged the stuffing out of him and told him she loved him, they separated to do the hard parts. </p><p>Nathan walked up to James, having waited his turn and hugged him tightly, tears in both of their eyes as it dawned on James too that this might be the last time. Nathan handed James the new journal and told him, “My wife and kids considered coming but didn’t want to take up all our limited time with introductions. There are a lot of pictures of them in there and they wrote parts too though.”</p><p>“Good. I’m glad,” James smiled. “I would like to get to know them somehow.” He knew that it would probably be easier to just completely let go of his family in this world, but he couldn’t do that. He’d grown up knowing that he was adopted and wanting nothing more than to know his biological parents. He had that chance now, as limited as it was with his father and he wasn’t giving that up. Having brothers and sisters was a dream come true for him too and he would hopefully get to meet them next time if their father was gone. After that he might be able to let go though. As the relatives got more distant. In the meantime, this brief break from his world meant everything to him. </p><p>While James and Nathan were chatting, Duke and Jeanie were saying goodbye and Audrey was staying back to wait her turn. “This is supposed to be easier this time,” Jeanie sniffled. “I’m not a little girl and I understand why you’re leaving.” </p><p>“I know,” Duke said sadly, reaching over to tuck her hair behind her ear so he could see her face clearly for the last time for a long time. “I don’t have to worry about how you’re going to grow up and what kind of woman you’ll become or if you’ll ever forgive me for leaving and hate me forever.”</p><p>“It’s not easier though,” she sighed as the tears broke loose from her eyes. </p><p>“No. It’s really not. Because this time I am leaving a strong beautiful woman who I would give anything to know better. There aren’t even words for how proud I am of you Jeanie. Or for how much I love you.”</p><p>“I love you too, Daddy,” she said shakily before hugging him tightly. “And I’m proud of you too. You do so much for so many people and sacrifice so much. I know you don’t like being called a hero, but you’ll always be /my/ hero.”</p><p>“Your hero I can live with,” he told her as his tears dripped into her hair. “And next time I come, I want to meet grandchildren,” he chuckled. </p><p>“I can’t make any promises, but probably. And I expect to see a hundred pictures of my new brothers and sisters,” Jeanie countered. </p><p>“Deal,” Duke agreed. He pulled back and pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. “You are the light of my life, Jeanie, and there will never be enough time with you, but I will cherish every second we have.” </p><p>“Me too, Dad. And I left a surprise on your phone for you to find later,” she grinned through her tears. </p><p>Duke barked a laugh and hugged her again. “And I left a surprise for you under your pillow for you to find later.” </p><p>“What kind of surprise?” she asked curiously. </p><p>“Consider it backpayment for the tooth fairy. You’ll understand then,” he smirked. He had cleaned out all but one of his Cayman accounts, which had tripled due to interest since the last time he’d checked and he deposited the little over four and a half million dollars into an account for her. Also in the Caymans to take advantage of their good interest rates and not have her paying huge tax penalties on it. He waited until now because he didn’t want her to try and refuse it. </p><p>“You know I don’t need your money,” Jeanie pointed out, not expecting much since as far as she knew she already had everything he’d owned before and they couldn’t have amassed that much in the last year and a half. It still had to be said though. </p><p>“I know. But what am I gonna do with it where I’m going?” Duke chuckled. “At least you can get some use out of it.” </p><p>“I’d still rather have you,” she said petulantly. </p><p>“I know, baby. And I’d rather have you,” Duke told her, kissing her head one more time before stepping aside and letting Audrey have her turn to say goodbye. </p><p>Jeanie caught the transition and pulled Audrey into a tight hug. “I never had a mom before, but I guess it’s true what they say. All good things come to those who wait. I couldn’t have asked for a better mom. I love you.” </p><p>“I love you too sweetie and I couldn’t have asked for a better daughter,” Audrey replied, tearing up. “I am /so/ proud of you. And I know you’re going to have a wonderful happy life.” </p><p>“Thanks mom. As much as it hurts losing you two, at least I know you have each other,” Jeanie told her. “Take good care of him?” </p><p>“Always,” she promised. </p><p>“I’ll miss you both so much,” Jeanie held out an arm for her dad to join a group hug. </p><p>“We’ll miss you too,” Audrey told her and Duke just nodded against her head. </p><p>“It seems like we have a normal drop-off point behind the Gull now, so assuming you’re still there, we’ll probably see you first next time we come,” Duke told her. </p><p>“I’ll be waiting,” she told them as they separated. </p><p>Both Duke and Audrey took a minute to hug Nathan and say quick goodbyes before they and James headed for the barn, looking back to see a teary Nathan, with an arm wrapped around a crying Jeanie and they all gave one last heartbroken wave before they entered the barn for the next twenty five and a half years. </p><p>Nathan and Jeanie watched sadly as the barn disappeared and stayed there for a few more minutes just taking it in before Nathan gave her a squeeze and said, “Why don’t we head back? You gonna be okay to drive the Rouge?” </p><p>Jeanie gave a watery chuckle. “I’m /always/ okay to drive her. Don’t think you’re getting the helm that easy.” </p><p>“Can’t blame a guy for trying,” Nathan huffed a laugh. It had been a running joke with them since she’d gotten the Rouge on her eighteenth birthday that no one would drive it but her, though she had obviously made an exception for her parents while they were here.  She hadn’t even let Wade drive it after that though despite saying that only a Crocker could helm her.</p>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Duke, Audrey, and James reappeared in the simulation back on the boat and sat down to catch up. “How did the troubles go?” was the first thing James asked, having had his actual first question about how Jeanie was answered already. </p><p>“They were much better this time,” Audrey told him. “They hadn’t even started yet when we got there, so they didn’t escalate very far. There was only about one incident a week on average instead of being an almost daily thing.” </p><p>“That’s good,” James said relieved. “I noticed that you didn’t look nearly as harried as you did last time.” </p><p>“Yeah last time was a nightmare,” Duke said tiredly just remembering it. </p><p>“How were things with you while we were gone? How are the kids?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“The kids are good, but…” </p><p>“But what?” Duke asked worriedly when he trailed off. </p><p>“You know how Kim and I were struggling over the whole me not aging while she did issue?” James asked. He’d been to them for advice more than once on how to help her with her insecurities. </p><p>“Oh honey, what happened?” Audrey asked, getting a feeling she knew. </p><p>“It got worse and just a couple months ago, she kicked me out,” James sighed. </p><p>“You want us to use the command phrase and get her over it?” Duke asked, having made the offer before and been turned down just as he fully expected to be this time but he still felt the need to offer. </p><p>“No. I’m not messing with her head and her free will like that,” James shook his head. “Even if I did, it wouldn’t mean anything. It wouldn’t be real. I don’t want it that way.” </p><p>“I can’t blame you for that,” Duke agreed and put a comforting hand on James’ shoulder. </p><p>“I’m suing for custody of the kids,” James told them. “I mean, I would never stop them from seeing their mother and having a relationship with her, but…”</p><p>“No, I get it. You want us to make sure you win?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“Now /that/ I will accept,” James huffed a laugh. He didn’t think he could survive much longer only seeing his kids on the weekends. The last two months had been hard for him. “The court date is a week from Monday,” James told them to give them a time frame. </p><p>“We’ll take care of it,” Duke promised, and talk turned to other things as they spent the rest of the day catching up before James headed back to the apartment above the Gull where he’d been staying since the split. He was hoping to get the house back with the kids because there wasn’t room in the apartment, but if he didn’t, Duke and Audrey had offered to let them stay in the Rouge until construction could be finished adding a couple rooms onto it. </p><p>Once they were alone, Duke pulled out the new phone he’d been given when they went to Earth and started looking for Jeanie’s surprise. He grinned when he found a video of her just sitting on the deck of the boat talking. She retold all their favorite stories of her growing up, talked a little about what was going on and how proud she was of everything that they were doing, how much she loved them and would miss them and even had a message for James and how much she wished she could know him and how beautiful his family was. The video was almost two hours long and after they watched it they set it aside for James to watch the next day as they were re-spoiling their grandchildren. </p><p>That night, Audrey also threw out her birth control pills with Duke’s permission, and they got started trying for a baby. Lucy Sarah Crocker was born a year, almost to the day, after they got back to the barn world and they were glad that James had gotten their house back when he got custody of the kids because the apartment wasn’t big enough for a family and they hadn’t even thought to add on to it anyway. They did realize that they would need an extra bedroom for their next kid assuming it wasn’t another girl, but they were too wrapped up in the baby to worry about it right then. </p><p>About the time Lucy was a year old, Duke did start remodeling the boat, adding a few more bulkheads which cut the size of the stateroom by about a quarter and also making Lucy’s current room a little smaller. All the rooms had been pretty big to start with though, so it wasn’t that much of a hardship. It was only two months after Lucy’s second birthday when Nathan Wade Crocker was born and they decided to be done. At least for this go around. They did have eternity after all. Raising babies on the boat quickly turned into an adventure, but they wouldn’t have it any other way. </p><p>Audrey decided not to go back to work and Duke didn’t do much in the way of his work either, not wanting to miss a second with these two the way he’d missed all of Jeanie’s life. That wasn’t to say that their entire world was wrapped up with their kids though. They still took nights out regularly, especially since they had such willing and eager babysitters in Junior and Sarah and even James who absolutely adored his baby sister and brother. Now that their grandkids were older they could even take family vacations again, though it was mostly during the summers when they were out of school and the boat got pretty crowded. Junior bunked in with Nathan and Sarah with Lucy while James took the pull out couch in the stateroom as they went down to the Bahamas every summer. </p><p>All of the kids grew up diving the second they were old enough and before that learned to snorkel at least. Tenth birthdays in the family, starting with James Junior, were as much of a right of passage as the sixteenth since they were spent getting the junior open water diving certifications. They started learning when they were eight at the hands of the adults, all of whom were certified master divers and teachers. The summer after Nathan turned ten when all of them were certified divers, they took the longer trip to the red sea so that they could show them all their favorite spots. Lucy was the only one who actually liked cavern diving like her dad and brother, but only Nathan had the same extreme reaction Audrey did to it. Junior and Sarah were okay with it, but not really fans. </p><p>All four of the kids ended up taking jobs on the water, but only Lucy followed in her father’s footsteps and became a smuggler. Neither Duke or Audrey were particularly happy about it, but after a long and intense conversation about all the bad parts, she was still determined so Duke helped her learn how to do it right. While he would make sure they knew the consequences and pitfalls, he would never tell any of his children how to live their lives. He taught her the ropes as they worked together for a few years before buying her a boat of her own which she named Loki’s Dream, having always loved the stories of the Viking Trickster god and wanted a connection to him. It seemed appropriate for a smuggler ship. Duke helped her put in all perks. Hiding spaces, escape hatches, secret compartments, the works. By the time she was twenty she was running her own enterprise and doing just as well at it as her dad. </p><p>Junior ended up being a fisherman, running a crew of his own mostly off the coast of Maine and supplying seafood for most of Haven and quite a few other places as well and he made a good living. Sarah went to college to become an oceanographer and quickly made a name for herself in the field. Nathan made a career out of diving, moving to the Bahamas and running tours of both the sea life and coral reefs and sunken ships and had the time of his life. And if he occasionally made connections that he could pass on to his sister, no one said much about it, anymore than they said anything about the packages he came out of the water with on his solo dives every so often. </p><p>Once his kids had graduated and moved out, starting their own lives, James moved back into the apartment above the Gull which he was still running. It was closer to the water, closer to his job, and still felt like home just as much as the house he’d raised his family in. Junior lived on his boat and Sarah was always traveling for her job, so he just rented the house out, not wanting to get rid of it completely in case he ever fell in love again and had another family. </p><p>Duke and Audrey had the Cape Rouge to themselves again once Nathan graduated high school. They had just set Lucy up with her own boat and took Nathan down to the Bahamas where he wanted to be themselves and from there they just travelled the world, frequently checking out the Bahamas and visiting with Nathan, meeting up with Lucy and Sarah often in various locations where they were working, and spending a few months a year in Haven with James, and James Junior, and just enjoyed their lives. </p><p>The last few weeks before they were supposed to head back to Earth again, they called the whole clan home to spend some time together and get any messages to pass on to their family on the other side. When the time came to leave, they were all gathered on the deck of the Cape Rouge, which would be left in James’ hands like last time, the rest of them having their own. Duke and Audrey had one bag each, with a few more photo albums this time and a little less clothes. Hugs and ‘good lucks’ were exchanged all around before Duke and Audrey disappeared.</p>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Duke and Audrey reappeared in the woods behind the Gull and quickly made their way to it. Once they got inside, they started scanning the area, looking for someone in particular but she spotted them first. With a squeal of “Daddy!” she bounded through the area and literally jumped into his arms. Duke dropped his bag and swung her in a circle to shed some momentum before he put her down laughing happily and then she all but tackled Audrey in a hug too with happy, “Mom!” </p><p>“It’s great to see you, sweetie,” Audrey grinned as she hugged her back. </p><p>“So you’re gonna have to stay in the apartment upstairs this time if that’s okay,” she said apologetically. </p><p>“I take it you lived up to your end of our agreement then?” Duke asked amusedly. </p><p>“Yep. Did you?” she asked. </p><p>“Sure did,” Duke chuckled. “Got albums in here,” he gestured to his bag. </p><p>“Why don’t you go ahead and take your stuff upstairs while I grab the boys and we’ll meet you up there?” Jeanie suggested. </p><p>“Sounds perfect,” Audrey agreed. </p><p>They just tossed their bags on the bed and then pulled out the albums and stacked them on the coffee table when Jeanie called out, “Knock knock,” from the open doorway as they came in. “Boys these are your grandparents I told you about. Mom, Dad, meet Wade Osborne Crocker and Duke Orion Crocker.”</p><p>“Mom, I’m Duke, he’s Wade,” one of the identical twins said with a roll of his eyes. </p><p>“No, I’m Duke, he’s Wade,” the other one said with a smirk. </p><p>Duke barked a laugh, cutting off whatever comment Jeanie had opened her mouth to make and joked, “No /I’m/ Duke and you’re /both/ just imposters.” </p><p>Audrey shook her head amusedly as she stepped forward to hug one of the twins prompting Duke to do the same. In the vein of teenage boys the world over, they both squirmed a bit in the hugs, but did allow them at least and even returned them. “Come on. Let’s sit and catch up,” Audrey told them leading them to the living area. </p><p>“How old are you all?” Duke asked curiously. </p><p>“The boys will be eighteen next month and you’re actually just in time for their graduation ceremony next week. I set two tickets aside for you hoping that you would be back in time.” </p><p>“We wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Duke promised. </p><p>“Yeah, any troubles that day can just go hang and wait until it’s over,” Audrey agreed. “How are your grades?” she asked them. </p><p>“I’m salutatorian,” Wade told them. </p><p>“Mine are okay, but I’m gonna be a chef anyway so I don’t really care that much,” young Duke shrugged. </p><p>“A chef huh?” Duke asked proudly. “I’m a pretty good cook myself and one of my best friends was a world class chef.” </p><p>“Yeah, I’ve been cooking since I was a kid. Always got all the cooks here to show me everything they knew,” young Duke told him. </p><p>“That’s a great way to do it. Never stop learning,” Duke told him before turning to Wade. “What about you? You know what you want to do with your life?”</p><p>“I’m gonna be a marine biologist,” he said proudly. </p><p>“That sounds like a great job,” Duke told him. </p><p>“One of our other grandkids, Sarah, is an oceanographer in the other world,” Audrey added. “She’s married to a marine biologist.” </p><p>“What about James Junior, what does he do?” young Duke asked. </p><p>“And any aunts and uncles we have there?” Wade jumped in. </p><p>“I guess that means time to pull out the albums,” Audrey chuckled and reached for them as Duke answered their questions. </p><p>“Junior is a fisherman, runs a crew that works off the coast of Maine. He’s a terminal bachelor,” Duke chuckled. </p><p>“People would have said that about you before we met too, remember,” Audrey laughed. “Don’t count him out yet.” </p><p>Duke didn’t dignify her comment with a reply and just continued. “Our kids, Lucy,” he pointed her out in the recent family picture that Audrey had opened to, “decided to give us grey hairs by following in my footsteps and becoming a smuggler. And Nathan,” he pointed him out too, “is a divemaster in the Bahamas running tours of all the diving hotspots.” </p><p>“How old are they?” Jeanie asked, just taking in the picture, easily recognizing James and picking out Sarah and Junior. </p><p>“Lucy is twenty-four and Nathan is twenty-two,” Audrey told them. </p><p>“He’s only twenty-two and already a master diver?” Wade asked in awe. They’d started taking scuba classes at sixteen, him for his hopeful job and Duke just because it seemed cool and his twin was doing it. They’d been certified last year, and they knew how much work it took to become a master.</p><p>“We’re all master divers and got our instructor certifications too when the kids started coming along. We started teaching them when they turned eight and they got their junior certifications at ten. Diving was something like the family past-time so we all logged a /lot/ of hours,” Duke told them. </p><p>“That’s pretty awesome,” Wade said. “I wish I could have grown up like that.”</p><p>“Me too,” Duke added. He wasn’t nearly as into diving as his brother, but he still liked it and growing up like that sounded great. </p><p>“It sounds like you’ve had pretty great lives too though, right?” Audrey asked, which started a long series of reminiscences from both sides, and a lot of pictures being shared back and forth once Jeanie grabbed the copies of the albums she kept up here for this day. Since there wasn’t any food in the normally vacant apartment, they headed down to the Gull for lunch and then dinner, but they planned on doing some grocery shopping the next day. Today was just for family. </p><p>After dinner, journals were exchanged, which had become something of a craze in the family as everyone kept them now to keep in touch with the family on the other side. Only one copy of each though and they would have to share, of course. The twins had a graduation party that night with their friends so they begged off after dinner, leaving the adults to talk and the first question thing Duke said once they were alone was, “I didn’t want to ask in front of them in case it was a sore subject, but…”</p><p>“Their father took off about the time I told him I was pregnant,” Jeanie expected the question. “We had only been dating for a few months at that point and I haven’t seen him since. He’s never reached out and I never bothered to look for him.”</p><p>“Well I’ll look for him then,” Duke said in clear irritation. He had no patience for a man who abandoned his children if there was any other choice. </p><p>“Not unless Jeanie wants you to,” Audrey said firmly. </p><p>“I don’t,” Jeanie told him. “Just let it go, Dad.”</p><p>“But…”</p><p>“Would you want me to go tracking down your mother to give her a piece of my mind?” Audrey asked pointedly. </p><p>Duke huffed and crossed his arms, leaning back against the couch. “Fine. I won’t go looking for him. But if I ever run across him by accident all bets are off.” </p><p>“Fair enough,” Jeanie agreed. He hadn’t been seen in town since that day anyway, having been a tourist in the area for the summer, so the chances that he’d come back now of all times was slim to none. </p><p>“Did you ever find someone else?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“Not really. I mean, I’ve had some boyfriends and all. Some of them pretty serious, but none of them lasted more than a few years and no I’m not seeing anyone right now,” Jeanie told them. </p><p>“What about everyone else? How are they?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“Dwight passed about eight years ago. Aunt Daphne about two years ago, but Uncle Nathan is still hanging on. Barely. He’s been trying to hold out until he could see you again, but it’s not likely he’s going to make it to see James again,” she said sadly. </p><p>“We’ll have to make sure we go see him tomorrow,” Audrey sighed. “Give him James’ last journal and the ones from Junior and Sarah.” </p><p>“You should give him all of them for now,” Jeanie suggested. “We can get them back from him later, but…”</p><p>“Yeah, I get you,” Duke cut her off, not really wanting it spelled out. Nathan was his oldest friend after all. “As long as you don’t mind, we’ll do that.” </p><p>“I don’t mind at all. And neither will the boys, though I would bet they’re chomping at the bit to get to Lucy’s,” she chuckled. “Their smuggler aunt will be like an adventure novel to them.”</p><p>Duke laughed and said, “Well they’ll just have to make do with the smuggler grandfather’s for a while then.” </p><p>“That’ll help,” Jeanie laughed.</p>
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<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“What about Nathan’s kids? Duke and Audrey?” Audrey asked, wondering about their namesakes. </p><p>“Audrey Wuornos is chief of police now. She’s married and has two kids, but didn’t take her husband’s name. He and their kids actually took hers since he was on the outs from his family. Aside from the dark times, there’s been a Wuornos as police chief in this town for almost a hundred and fifty years and she’s not about to break the tradition,” Jeanie chuckled. </p><p>“Good for her,” Audrey laughed. “What about Duke?” </p><p>Jeanie sobered quickly and sighed. “Duke is…gone.” It was so much harder to talk about the tragic deaths than it was the ones from old age. </p><p>“What happened?” Duke asked, wrapping his arm around his wife for pre-emptive comfort. </p><p>“Well he got his dream and made it to the big leagues. He was the starting first baseman for the Yankees for four years until another player took out his knee with a nasty slide. After that…” she paused to steady herself. “Everyone tried to help him. Nathan and Daphne especially. Even Audrey pulled out all the stops to help her brother, but he just…kept falling. Got addicted to the painkillers and then moved on to more. He died of an overdose about ten years ago. He was thirty-two.”</p><p>Audrey buried her head in Duke’s shoulder as tears shined in her eyes and Duke rubbed her back soothingly. “I’m sorry to hear that. Nathan must have been a mess,” Duke said sadly. </p><p>“He was. He’s never really gotten over it, but then who could?” Jeanie sighed. “The thought of losing either of my boys like that…” she shuddered. </p><p>“At least he got to live his dream for a little while,” Duke looked for the silver lining. “That’s more than a lot of people get.” </p><p>“That’s true,” she smiled sadly. “But I think that’s what made it so hard for him to lose it. He just…couldn’t go on without it.” </p><p>“Was he buried here?” Audrey found words to ask. “We could go see him. Leave flowers or something.” </p><p>“Yeah, he was buried beside his grandfather’s cooler in the cemetery along with his mother,” she told them. “I’ll take you there sometime soon.”</p><p>“How are the troubles going right now?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“Not great, but still manageable. About the way it was when you left last time,” Jeanie told them. </p><p>“Is Nate…” Duke asked curiously. </p><p>“No, he hasn’t been triggered this time. He’s a little too old to be getting into fights anymore,” Jeanie laughed. “The chief has though. She was one of the first. Along with her ten-year-old son. Sledding accident if you believe that.” </p><p>Duke and Audrey couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Talk about irony,” Duke said. </p><p>“What about the boys? Was their father troubled?” Audrey had to ask. </p><p>“Not that we know of,” she told them. “He wasn’t a local, but he did have some distant family here, cousins and such, so there’s a chance, but probably not.” </p><p>“What family were his cousins from?” Duke asked curiously. </p><p>“They were Glendowers,” Jeanie told him. </p><p>“So mermen,” Audrey nodded, remembering the family well. “At least if they do get it from that side, it’s not so bad.” </p><p>“Yeah, that is a plus. I mean, I’d miss them like crazy of course, but they’d be okay and it wouldn’t be for too long. And they’d probably have a blast,” Jeanie chuckled. </p><p>“But we can still hope they don’t get it,” Duke said, not wanting to miss out on so much time with his grandsons if it could be avoided. </p><p>“Yeah, definitely,” Jeanie agreed. </p><p>They continued chatting until after midnight before Jeanie headed home to the Rouge. It was almost an hour later and Duke and Audrey were sitting on the deck when the saw the twins coming back, staggering and shushing each other loudly and Duke rolled his eyes and headed down the stairs to meet them. “Come on boys. I’m relatively certain you don’t want to go home in your current states.”</p><p>“But our curfew,” one of them slurred. </p><p>“I’ll shoot your mom a text and let her know you’re staying with us tonight,” Duke promised. </p><p>“She’ll be mad,” the other one pointed out. </p><p>“At me, maybe. But /you/ two won’t end up grounded for life right before graduation,” Duke chuckled, steering them towards the stairs. He’d seen the cab drop them off so at least they were that smart so Duke was willing to give them a little leeway. For the moment anyway. </p><p>Audrey frowned disapprovingly as they came in but refrained from saying anything. She knew exactly what Duke was going to do so she had already made up the couch and recliner and texted Jeanie to let her know the boys were sleeping over and got an acknowledgement back. Duke dumped one of the boys on the couch and the other in the recliner and they were passed out in minutes. Once Duke and Audrey returned to watching the stars, she did say something. “You’re gonna keep them out of trouble for this aren’t you?” </p><p>“Not completely sure yet,” Duke told her. “I plan to find out if this is a /problem/ issue or just a cutting loose with their buddies to celebrate graduation one time thing. Assuming it’s the latter, yeah. I plan on helping them out.” </p><p>“But if it’s an ongoing problem?” Audrey asked. </p><p>“Then we’ll have a long talk and figure out how /much/ of a problem and how to fix it,” Duke told her. </p><p>“Okay. Fair enough,” Audrey agreed. She wasn’t going to roast them if it was a one time thing though either. That didn’t mean that she was going to be nice, however as they learned the next morning when she broke out the coffee grinder, specifically choosing the unground coffee when she swiped from downstairs. When they both woke up with miserable groans she smirked and stopped it. “Oh, I’m sorry. Was that too loud?” She ignored their mutters that she couldn’t quite make out the words of anyway, though she could make some pretty good guesses. “I’m almost done,” she said as she started it going again. </p><p>Duke was at the stove making breakfast and just biting his lip in an effort not to laugh. He was also making the breakfast particularly greasy for the same reason that Audrey was grinding her own coffee. Just because he would keep them out of trouble didn’t mean he couldn’t teach them a lesson. He did hand over some asprin though. He wasn’t a /monster/. But he did wait until after they had emptied their stomachs. They vehemently denied any food and just sat miserably on the couch while Duke and Audrey had a nice breakfast. “First hangover boys?” Duke asked cheerfully. </p><p>“First and /last/,” Wade muttered. </p><p>That was enough to tell them both that this wasn’t a regular thing, so they laid off on any further intentional torture. “Good. Remember that,” Audrey still had to say. </p><p>“Are you gonna tell mom?” young Duke asked worriedly. </p><p>“Not this time, no,” Duke told his namesake. “Just because you two were smart enough to take a cab instead of driving or riding with someone else drinking. As long as this doesn’t become a dangerous habit, we can just call this one an oops and leave it at that.” </p><p>“Thanks grandpa,” Wade said relieved. </p><p>“Hey, he’s not the only one keeping his mouth shut,” Audrey chuckled in mock-offense. </p><p>“Thanks grandma,” young Duke said quickly, very much not wanting that to change. </p><p>“You can thank us by cleaning up from breakfast,” Audrey smirked. </p><p>“But it can wait until later,” Duke added. “We’re gonna head out with your mother so you two can take some time to rest first.” </p><p>Duke and Audrey headed down to the Rouge with the larger than usual amount of leftovers to find Jeanie just making coffee. “Mmm. You have no idea how much I’ve missed your breakfasts,” she said happily as she dug in. “How are the boys?” </p><p>“They were out late so we’re letting them rest,” Duke explained. </p><p>“Killer hangover huh?” Jeanie smirked. Audrey snickered and Duke just looked away innocently and their lack of answer was answer enough. “I’m not an idiot, you know,” Jeanie told them amusedly. </p><p>“Never thought you were,” Duke said with a smirk of his own. “You are a Crocker after all. But I did make certain promises not to bring up certain subjects, so…”</p><p>“You’ll handle it and I’ll pretend to be clueless,” Jeanie rolled her eyes. While she knew that her father wasn’t exactly the /best/ influence, Mom wouldn’t let him go too far. And even Duke wouldn’t let them get /too/ out of control even without her, so she would trust them to take care of it this time.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After she ate, she took them to see Nathan as their first stop. They’d brought the journals from James and all the kids as well as the photo albums. “Geez Nate. You got old,” Duke said again as Nathan let them in. </p><p>“And you didn’t,” Nathan wheezed a laugh as they repeated their words from last time before he pulled Duke into a hug followed by Audrey and then Jeanie before turning his walker around and heading back into the house, pulling the small portable oxygen tank along with him. </p><p>“Here let me give you a hand,” Duke offered reaching forward. </p><p>Nathan gave him an amused look and said, “When you’re nice to me it reminds me that I’m dying.” </p><p>Duke barked a laugh and pulled his hand back as he said, “Well hurry the hell up then.” </p><p>It took Audrey a second to get it and then she chuckled and shook her head. “My how the tables have turned.” </p><p>“No fair with the inside jokes,” Jeanie said with a mock pout. Duke opened his mouth to explain and then stopped himself, remembering what brought on that incident and even Audrey got a suddenly uncomfortable look which made Jeanie suspicious. “It’s about my birth isn’t it?” she realized. “When Dad got old and almost died.” The expressions on their faces were all the answer she needed. No one ever talked about that incident with her. “I’m fine with talking about it you know? It was a long time ago and I’m over it,” she needed that made clear. </p><p>Duke just shrugged and said, “Yeah. It was from then. Basically, a replay of our conversation when Nathan tried to help me when I was having trouble getting around.” </p><p>Nathan did let Jeanie and Audrey help him into his chair and Jeanie switched the wires to his big oxygen tank with practiced ease. “You have pictures?” Nathan asked already grabbing for his glasses. </p><p>“Yeah, we do,” Audrey pulled a chair to one side of him and Duke to the other side as Audrey handed him the album. “And a stack of journals for you. One each from James, Junior, Sarah, and our two Lucy and Nathan.” </p><p>“You named your son for me?” Nathan asked in awe with tears in his eyes. He was getting more and more emotional in his old age. </p><p>“Turnabout’s fair play,” Duke chuckled before remembering what had happened to his namesake. “I was sorry to hear about him.”</p><p>“We tried so hard to help him, but he didn’t want anyone’s help,” Nathan sighed sadly before shaking it off and opening the album. </p><p>“Here let’s start with the most recent picture so you can see everyone now and then we can go back,” Audrey suggested turning to the end. </p><p>The first thing Nathan noticed was, “James isn’t aging?” The last time he had just figured he was aging well after so long in medical stasis, but now it was completely clear. </p><p>“No, when Lucy had to take him into the barn to save his life, he had to be partially integrated into the barn’s artificial intelligence system to survive. That’s why he can’t leave the barn for very long. His biological body starts to break down with the constant input from the barn’s systems. It basically halted his aging at twenty-seven,” Audrey explained. </p><p>“I see. I hadn’t realized that,” Nathan said with a nod signaling them to move on. </p><p>“That’s James Junior. There’s Sarah, her husband Dave, and their two girls Madison and McKenzie, That’s Lucy, and there’s Nathan,” Duke pointed everyone out from the group picture they’d taken standing on the deck of the Rouge. </p><p>“I have great-granddaughters,” Nathan said in awe. “How old are they?” </p><p>“Madison is four and McKenzie is two,” Audrey told him. “Junior is thirty-nine, Sarah is thirty-five, Lucy’s twenty-four, and Nathan’s twenty-two,” she added the rest before he could ask. </p><p>“You didn’t waste any time once you got back did you?” Nathan chuckled. </p><p>“Well, we’d been married for over twenty five years by that point. We figured it was time,” Duke joked. </p><p>From there they turned back to the beginning and told him about all the pictures. Births, first steps, first dives, different places around the world that they’d visited, Sarah’s wedding, what the kids did for jobs, the fact that James was still running the Gull and it was Duke’s in name only and just so he could have a legitimate business to pull attention from his illegitimate ones. Nathan couldn’t help but laugh when they told him about Lucy being a smuggler like her father and just told him, “Serves you right.” </p><p>They spent almost the whole day there, Duke cooking lunch and dinner for the group and before they left, Nathan pointed out the drawer where he was keeping his last journal for James so that they would know where to find it ‘just in case’. That just in case did end up coming to pass almost eight months later. As much as they wished that he’d been able to hold on long enough to see James one last time, at least they got to be here for his funeral and thankfully it wasn’t interrupted by a trouble disaster. </p><p>The graduation for the twins wasn’t interrupted either, and Duke and Audrey were more than happy that they got to be there for it and so were the twins who were more than a little attached to their grandparents already. Especially once they started diving on their free weekends that weren’t interrupted by the troubles. Both of them were tempted to defer their college admissions for a year, but after a long talk with the adults in the family decided against it. It helped that they were both going to school close enough that they could come home on the weekends, young Duke heading to culinary arts school in Bangor and Wade heading to the University of Maine in Augusta for Marine Biology. </p><p>Audrey was offered a badge by her namesake and accepted it after their first two weeks, but quickly learned that she wasn’t going to be doing normal police work. The new Chief had started a temporary troubles task force which Audrey would be heading. There were a couple older officers that she remembered from her last time through and four younger kids who they would be training up for next time. Plus, Duke as an auxiliary member of course. Having more people to help meant more time to spend with their family so that was a good thing at least. Especially since the troubles were so much worse than last time, but still nowhere near as bad as what the town had started to call the ‘dark times’ after the barn was nearly destroyed. </p><p>When the time came for them to leave again, Jeanie and Audrey Wuornos were the only ones to accompany them, the twins still being at school and Audrey’s kids being too young to understand what was going on at eight and eleven years old. After the hugs all around for those who knew each other, Audrey came over to James. “I know we haven’t met, but…I’m your sister Audrey.” </p><p>James smiled a little sadly as he pulled her into a hug. He was more than glad to meet her, but knew what it meant that his father wasn’t here instead. “It’s great to meet you, Audrey.” </p><p>“You too,” she said, glad of her welcome. She’d been assured that he’d love her, but you never knew until you were there. “I have these for you,” she said as they separated and handed him three journals. “Dad tried to hang on to be here, but he finally passed last year and my brother, Duke…he passed a while ago too. I’m sure they’ll give you the story, but…these are theirs. And mine. My kids are still a little young to keep them, but there are plenty of pictures and Duke and Audrey have an album to share with you and…”</p><p>“Thank you,” James said sincerely, cutting off her rambling. “I’m glad I get the chance to know my family even if it has to be like this.” </p><p>“And we love getting the news of you and your family from your journals too. It makes us feel closer to you,” she told him. </p><p>While they were getting to know each other, Jeanie was saying goodbye to Audrey and Duke. “This is never going to get easier is it,” she said sadly as they had a group hug. </p><p>“No, probably not,” Audrey replied. </p><p>Duke put his hands to her cheeks and looked in her eyes. “I am still so very proud of you and the life you’ve made for yourself and your boys. You did an amazing job with them and make sure they know I’m proud of them too.” </p><p>“You’ve told them often enough,” Jeanie chuckled around her tears. “But I’ll make sure they never forget. I love you, Dad.”</p><p>“And I love you too baby,” he told her, pulling her into another tight hug, none of them mentioning that it might be the last time, but all fully aware of it. Next time they came she would be almost eighty. He pulled back and pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead before stepping back and letting Audrey have her turn. </p><p>Audrey reached out to brush her hair back as she said, “Like your dad said, we’re so proud of you. I can’t imagine how hard it must have been raising twins all by yourself, but you did it.” </p><p>Jeanie smiled and said, “I’m a Crocker. There’s nothing a Crocker can’t handle.” </p><p>“You got that right,” Audrey said proudly pulling her into a warm hug. “I love you, sweetie. Always.”</p><p>“I love you too, Mom.” </p><p>They moved back over to James and waited until he finished with his other sister and turned to Jeanie and she took the opportunity to hug him tightly. “I miss you, big brother.” </p><p>“Me too kiddo,” James told her, lifting her up off the ground for a minute. “I look forward to hearing all the stories and seeing all the pictures of you and your kids that we don’t have time for now. I love you Jeanie,” he told her wrapping an arm around her shoulders and holding out the other arm for his other sister. “I love you too, Audrey.”</p><p>“Love you,” both women said in unison before laughing and then the three barn inhabitants were walking away, not to be seen again for another twenty-five and a half years. </p><p>By the next time Duke and Audrey returned, Jeanie was bedridden, but had been determined to hold on long enough to see them, but only lasted another month after that. Young Duke was the owner of the Gull now and Wade had taken a leave of absence from his lab to spend the last bit of time with his mother and then stayed to help with the troubles and spend time with his grandparents. Both of the twins were married and had kids. Duke had three, but Wade only had one. Wade and his wife lived aboard the Cape Rouge which they usually kept anchored near Wade’s underwater lab while Duke lived upstairs in the much-expanded apartment above the Gull. One that he’d made sure had a spare bedroom for the grandparents. </p><p>Their next cycle back in the barn they decided to have more children, two boys and a girl this time. Their youngest was only a few years old when Nathan got sick and died not long afterwards due to age and Lucy was only a year after him. Outliving their children was harder than they ever could have imagined but knowing that they’d died peacefully of old age made it easier. They started having children every second cycle and spending the intervening cycle just with each other. And of course, visiting their other family often.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is basically the end of the story, but I might do some cracky add-ons at some point if I get in the mood with some crazy things they could use their 'command overrides' for in the simulated world.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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